;  \.     .    .    •  -' 


I 

SING  LAIR 


U,  C.  L  A. 
EDUC.  DEPT. 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


The  Possibility 


OF  A 


Science  of  Education 


SAMUEL  BOWER  SINCLAIR 

VICE-1'RINCII'AL    NORMAL   SCHOOL,    OTTAWA,    CANADA 


CHICAGO 

THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  CHICAGO   PRESS 

*9°3 


U.  C.  L.  A. 


U.  C.  L.  A. 


CONTENTS. 


Chapter  Page 

I.  Introduction 1 

(a)  Statement  of  the  Problem. 

(/<)  Summary  of  replies  from  University  Professors. 

(c)  Statement  of  position  to  be  defended. 

II.  The  Empirical  Objection 14 

Consideration  of  several  popular  criticisms  urged 
against  the  Professional  Training  of  Teachers. 

III.  The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science 22 

(a)  Contrast  between  the  Static  and  Dynamic  con- 
ceptions. Superiority  of  the  Dynamic  con- 
ception. 

(/>)  Illustration  of  the  Dynamic  view  of  Science 
as  applied  to  the  classificatory  judgment  in 
Educational   procedure. 

IV.  The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Education  ....     34 

(a)  Consideration    of    various     Static    theories    of 

Education  ;  (1)  Instruction  ;  (2)  Development  ; 
(3)  Follow-Nature.  Superiority  of  the  Dyna- 
mic theory. 

(b)  Statement  of  the  view  of  Education  defended  in 

this  treatise. 

V.  Educational  Aims  and  Means 44 

(a)  Analysis  of  Aims  and  Means  of  Education. 

(b)  Educational    Aims.     Static    aims    hitherto    pro- 

posed— Instruction,  discipline,  culture.  The 
true  aim — Character,  i.e.,  true  culture,  com- 
bining both  Instruction  and  Discipline.  The 
true  aims  of  education  formulated  on  the  basis 
of  Ethical  and  Sociological  considerations. 
Importance  of  an  investigation  of  the  aims 
of    Education    by    the    teacher. 


1446SG3 


iv  Contents. 

CHArTER  1**08 

(c)  Educational  Means.  The  material  or  subject- 
matter  furnished  from  sources  beyond  the 
direct  control  of  the  teacher.  Value  of  Socio- 
logical, Biological  and  Political  investigations 
in  this  connection.  The  Educator's  work, 
mainly  in  regard  to  method.  Valuable  assist- 
ance derived  from  Psychology  and  cognate 
sciences  and  from  the  History  of  Education. 
Consideration  of  objections  against  Psychology 
as  an  aid.     The  Historical  Factor. 

VI.  The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.     57 

Ways  in  which  Psychology  is  of  value  in  Educa- 
tion.    It  furnishes  information  regarding  : 

1.  Stages  of  mental  development. 

2.  The  Unity  of  individual  Experience. 

3.  The  genesis  of  Habit. 

4.  The  sequence  of  subject-matter. 

5.  The  conditions  most  conducive  to  Educa- 

tional activity. 

6.  The  application  of  this  knowledge  to  : 

{<<)  The  judicious  selection  and  arrange- 
ment of  subject-matter. 

(b)  Methods  of  teaching. 

(c)  The   securing  of  proper  conditions 

for  study. 
Classroom  illustrations. 

VII.  The  Technique  of  Educational  Science 89 

(a)  The  present  status  of  Educational  Science. 

(6)  Influences  detrimental  to  the  growth  of  Educa- 
tional Science. 

(c)  Improvements  suggested. 

(<l)  Illustrations  of  development  of  Educational 
technique  and  treatment  of  the  subject  in 
Professional   Training-schools. 

Summary   of  Thesis   Argument. 

APPENDIX. 

Quotations  From  Kki  lies  Received  From  University 
Professors 119 


THE   POSSIBILITY   OF  A  SCIENCE 
OF   EDUCATION. 


CHAPTER   I. 

INTRODUCTION. 

Can  there  be  a  science  of  education  as  there  is  a  science 
of  mathematics,  of  physics,  of  medicine,  or  of  ethics ;  are 
there  educational  facts  or  principles  capable  of  discovery 
and  systematization  which  are  so  fundamental,  universal  and 
important  as  to  differentiate  educational  science  from  every 
other  ;  and,  further,  is  a  study  of  such  educational  science  of 
service  to  the  educator  by  furnishing  him  with  instruments 
of  insight  which  will  be  valuable  in  the  determination  of  the 
true  purpose  of  education  and  of  ways  and  means  to  its 
attainment  ?  This,  in  brief,  is  the  problem  submitted  for 
investigation. 

No  argument  is  necessary  to  demonstrate  the  important 
practical  bearing  of  the  problem  proposed.  Its  solution  affects 
in  a  most  profound  and  vital  way  every  phase  of  educational 
procedure.  More  especially  is  this  true  in  regard  to  the  prep- 
aration of  teachers.  If  the  foregoing  questions  are  answered 
in  the  negative,  the  so-called  professional  training  of  teachers 
is  "  a  delusion  and  a  snare,"  and  had  better  be  dispensed 
with.  On  the  other  hand,  if  an  affirmative  answer  should  be 
given  to  these  questions  every  teacher,  from  the  kindergarten 
to  the  university,  would  be  rendered  more  efficient  by  a  cer- 
tain quantum  of  a  suitable  kind  of  preliminary  professional 
training. 

The  problem  is  an  old  and  familiar  one  and  has  in  some 
form  or  other  received  the  attention  of  scholars  and  practical 

men  from  the  earliest  times. 

l 


2  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

With  the  modern  scientific  movement  the  subject  has 
naturally  come  prominently  into  the  foreground  of  public 
consciousness,  and  has  received  extended  and  scholarly  treat- 
ment at  the  hands  of  many  eminent  philosophers  and  scientists. 

The  view  advocated  by  many  of  these  writers — especially  by 
university  men — is,  in  brief,  that  science  being  abstract  and 
universal,  and  the  child  concrete  and  individual,  there  can  be 
no  science  of  education  properly  so  called  ;  and,  further,  that 
as  knowledge,  natural  aptitude  and  successful  experience  are 
the  prime  requisites  of  the  successful  teacher,  pedagogical 
training  is  unnecessary  and    may  do  more  harm  than  good. 

Public  sentiment,  however,  which  history  has  proved  to  be 
at  times  more  sane  than  current  philosophy,  has  persisted  in  a 
constantly-increasing  demand  for  more  thorough  and  continued 
professional  training  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.* 

The  increased  attention  given  to  the  subject  during  recent 
years  in  all  civilized  countries  is  phenomenal,  and  would  seem 
to  indicate  an  almost  universal  sentiment  in  favor  of  the 
importance  of,  and  necessity  for,  such  training ;  e.g.,  in  the 
Province  of  Ontario,  Canada,  the  annual  government  grant 
for  teachers'  salaries  and  other  expenditure,  not  including 
buildings,  in  such  professional  schools  was  in  1870,  $17,169.74; 
in  1890,  $52,532.00;  in  1900,  $74,518.00. 

The  demand  for  professional  training,  formerly  confined 
almost   exclusively    to  the   elementary  school,    has   recently 

*It  must  be  admitted,  however,  that  there  are  evidences  to  show  that  in  many, 
perhaps  the  majority  of,  cases  citizens  have  no  very  clearly -defined  reasons  to  assign 
for  this  additional  burden  of  taxation,  and,  in  cases  where  the  selection  of  a  trained 
instead  of  an  untrained  teacher  involves  personal  financial  loss  or  the  sacrifice  of 
private  interests  political  or  otherwise,  the  results  are  often  such  as  to  indicate  that 
sentiment  in  favor  of  professional  (raining  has  not  become  sufficiently  ingrained  to 
form  a  strong  motive  for  action.  As  an  example  we  may  cite  the  conditions  which 
obtain  in  the  State  of  Illinois.  In  the  report  of  the  State  Superintendent  of  Education 
(June,  1901)  we  find  (p.  16)  that  Illinois  has  two  normal  universities  and  two  normal 
Bchools  with  a  total  government  expenditure  of  8293,398.48,  and  yet  that  (p.  43)  "not 
one  teacher  in  five  has  been  either  liberally  educated  or  trained  in  a  state  normal 
school."  The  report  also  shows  (p.  8)  that  the  lowest  salary  paid  for  a  male  teacher  It 
112.60  per  month,  and  for  a  female  teacher  $8.00  per  month. 


Introduction.  3 


made  itself  felt  in  connection  with  the  high  school,  and  in 
compliance  with  this  demand  many  universities  have  estab- 
lished departments  of  education. 

In  the  educational  world,  as  along  other  lines  of  human 
activity,  the  necessity  for  cooperation  is  being  realized  as 
never  before.  The  university,  the  secondary  and  the  elemen- 
tary schools  are  beginning  to  see  that  the  interests  of  each  are 
bound  up  in,  and  dependent  upon,  the  success  of  the  others. 
The  low  estimate  of  university  training  formerly  entertained 
by  many  teachers  of  elementary  schools  is  rapidly  giving  place 
to  a  feeling  of  true  appreciation,  while,  at  the  opposite  pole, 
ignorance  of  the  elementary  school  system  of  one's  country  is 
not  now  considered  a  sine  qua  non  for  scholarly  reputation. 

In  no  case  is  this  change  of  attitude  from  one  of  disregard 
to  one  of  sympathetic  and  attentive  consideration  more  evi- 
dent than  in  the  interest  shown  by  university  men  in  the 
problem  here  under  discussion. 

With  a  view  to  determine  in  a  general  way  the  opinion  held 
by  university  professors  regarding  the  value  of  professional 
training  for  teachers  I  prepared  a  circular  and  sent  it  to 
presidents  and  heads  of  departments  of  American  universities 
considered  to  be  most  representative.  Sixty-three  replies  were 
received.  Of  these  nine  were  from  presidents  of  universities, 
and  with  only  four  exceptions  the  remainder  were  from  heads 
of  departments.  Thirteen  replies  were  from  professors  of  the 
department  of  philosophy,  eleven  from  natural  science,  eight 
from  classics,  five  from  mathematics,  four  from  English, 
six  from  teaching  and  seven  from  other  departments.  The 
replies  from  professors  of  teaching  departments  are  not 
included  in  this  report.* 

The  following  is  a  summary  of  questions  submitted  and 
replies  received  : — 

*  For  statements  of  views  held  by  professors  in  teaching  department  see  report  of 
the  committee  on  "The  Certification  of  College  and  University  Graduates  as  Teachers 
in  the  Public  Schools"  in  The  School  Review,  June,  1899,  The  University  of  Chicago 
Press. 


The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 


1.  Do  you  consider  that  the   present  system  of  professional 

training,   e.g.,   Normal    Schools  or  University   Depart- 
ment of  Pedagogy,  is  desirable  for  teachers  in 
(a)  Elementary   Schools  1     Affirmative  answers,   28  ;   nega- 
tive, 3. 
(6)  Secondary    Schools  1      Affirmative    answers,   28  ;    nega- 
tive, 9. 
(c)  Universities?     Affirmative  answers,   20;  negative,   17. 

2.  Do  you  consider  that  a  system  of    Professional    training 

could  be  devised  which  would  be  desirable  for  teachers  in 
(a)  Elementary  Schools  1     Affirmative  answers,  43  ;    nega- 
tive, 3. 
(6)  Secondary    Schools  ?     Affirmative    answers,    43  ;    nega- 
tive, 3. 
(c)  Universities'?     Affirmative  answers,   31;   negative,    11. 

3.  Do  you  think  it  possible  to  place  the  training  of  teachers 

upon  a  Scientific  Basis  1  Affirmative  views,  27 ;  nega- 
tive, 2. 
Many  of  those  who  answer  in  the  affirmative  point  out  that 
they  do  so  with  the  reservation  that  in  the  first  question 
reference  is  to  the  better  type  of  existing  training-schools, 
and  in  the  third  to  a  proper  interpretation  of  the  word  "  scien- 
tific." 

Those  who  do  not  answer  the  categorical  questions  (and 
many  who  do  reply  to  them)  have  been  so  good  as  to  add 
written  statements  of  their  views  on  the  general  topic,  and 
from  these  statements  the  following  summary  is  made : 

Forty-five  out  of  fifty-seven  favor  the  professional  training 
of  teachers.  Of  these  a  number  would  confine  the  training  to 
a  certain  class,  e.g.,  teachers  of  elementary  schools,  and  would 
reduce  the  time  and  content  of  the  course  to  a  minimum.  One 
is  opposed  to  all  such  training.  Twenty-six  emphasize  knowl- 
edge of  the  subject  to  be  taught,  as  an  important,  if  not 
the  most  important,   factor   to  be  considered  in   a  teacher's 


Introduction. 


preparation.  Thirteen  emphasize  natural  aptitude,  vigorous 
personality,  etc.,  as  important  factors.  Five  emphasize  study 
under  an  able  and  inspiring  teacher,  as  invaluable  in  such 
preparation.  Four  award  the  palm  to  successful  experience. 
Twenty-two  express  the  opinion  that  in  many  existing  profes- 
sional training-schools  there  is  a  tendency  to  depreciate  one  or 
more  of  the  above-mentioned  elements — knowledge,  aptitude, 
observation,  experience — and  to  substitute  pedagogical  methods 
as  an  equivalent.  Eleven  hold  the  view  that  professional  train- 
ing is  most  important  for  elementary  school  teachers,  and  that 
its  value  uniformly  decreases  as  we  ascend  to  higher  levels  in 
the  system,  until  for  university  teachers  it  is  of  little  or  no 
value. 

That  so  many  of  our  ablest  thinkers  in  the  fields  of  science, 
literature  and  art,  should  have  taken  time  to  turn  aside  from 
their  important  duties,  to  express  themselves  so  fully  on  the 
subject  at  issue  will,  I  am  sure,  be  a  source  of  inspiration  to 
those  who,  in  humbler  spheres,  are  endeavoring  to  render  their 
teaching  more  efficient.  That  there  should  be  such  unanimity 
of  opinion  that  method  has  been  exalted  at  the  expense  of 
knowledge  would  seem  to  indicate  that  some  training-schools, 
at  least,  have  not  been  true  to  the  highest  ideals.  It  is  also 
worthy  of  note  that  over  ninety  per  cent,  of  those  who  replied, 
favor  some  form  of  professional  training,  although  there  is 
great  diversity  of  opinion  regarding  the  nature  of  the  training 
which  should  be  given. 

As  will  be  seen,  nearly  one  half  of  those  from  whom  replies 
have  been  received  do  not  feel  themselves  prepared  to  express 
any  opinion  regarding  the  possibility  of  placing  the  training  of 
teachers  upon  a  scientific  basis,  while  those  who  do  reply  in 
the  affirmative  do  so  with  reservations  differing  widely  in 
character. 

On  page  119  and  subsequent  pages  will  be  found  quotations 
from  the  answers  received,  incorporating  the  arguments  pro 


6  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

and  con.  Space  does  not  admit  of  a  complete  statement  of  all 
the  replies. 

A  consideration  of  the  facts  thus  far  referred  to  seems  to 
suggest  the  need  of  further  investigation  of  the  problem. 

In  the  following  pages  I  have  endeavored  to  establish  the 
thesis  that  a  science  of  education  is  possible.  It  will  be 
observed  that  throughout  the  argument  constant  emphasis  has 
also  been  placed  upon  the  importance  of  the  professional  train- 
ing of  teachers.  This  seeming  dual  treatment  is  the  logical 
outgrowth  of  the  dynamic  conception  (subsequently  explained) 
upon  which  the  argument  is  based,  a  conception  which  holds 
that  the  relation  of  theory  and  practice  is  of  such  an  intimate 
nature  that  neither  can  be  divorced  from  the  other.  Further, 
this  conception  makes  the  criterion  of  the  possibility  of  educa- 
tional science  to  consist  in  its  capacity  to  furnish  insight  in 
educational  procedure,  and  I  have,  therefore,  tried  to  show  by 
somewhat  extended  and  definite  illustrations,  ways  in  which 
such  insight  can  be  furnished. 

In  the  attempt  to  arrive  at  a  satisfactory  solution  regarding 
the  problem  proposed,  I  am  not  unmindful  of  the  high  charac- 
ter of  the  sources  of  the  opinions  from  which  I  am  obliged  to 
differ.  I  am  convinced  that  these  opinions  would  have  been 
greatly  modified  had  their  authors  had  time  and  opportunity 
to  observe  the  improvement  which  invariably  takes  place  in 
the  teaching  power  of  those  who  are  being  professionally 
trained  in  a  truly  scientific  way. 

Two  articles  on  the  subject  of  "  Pedagogy  as  a  Science " 
may  be  said  to  have  become  classical  authorities  owing  to  the 
philosophical  character  of  the  treatment  and  the  eminence  of 
the  authors.  The  first  is  by  Professor  Dilthey,  "Ueber  die 
Mbglichkeit  einer  allgemeingiltigen  pedagogischen  Wissen- 
chaften,"  1888,  pp.  807-832.  The  second  is  by  Professor 
Royce,  "  Is  there  a  Science  of  Education  1 "  Educational 
Review,  1891,  pp.  15-121.     Professor  Royce  reviews  Dr.  Dil- 


Introduction. 


they's  article  and  expresses  himself  as  substantially  in  accord 
with  the  views  therein  enunciated.  Both  writers  conclude 
that  there  can  be  no  science  of  education  properly  so  called, 
but  that  valuable  training  may  be  afforded  by  a  study  of 
the  history  of  education,  biological  science,  etc. 

The  following  quotations  may  serve  to  indicate  the  line  of 
argument  followed  in  Professor  Royce's  article  : 

"Scientific  pedagogy,  far  from  telling  the  teacher  finally  and  com- 
pletely just  what  human  nature  is  and  must  be  and  just  what  to  do 
with  it,  will  be  limited  to  pointing  out  what  does,  on  the  whole, 
tend  toward  good  order  and  toward  the  organization  of  impulses  into 
character.  This  is  the  whole  province  of  pedagogy  as  a  general  science. 
Its  applications  to  the  conditions  of  a  particular  time,  nation,  family 
and  child,  will  be  a  matter  of  art  not  of  science.  And,  therefore,  no 
concrete,  educational  questions  can  be  solved  in  terms  of  a  universally 
valid  science.  Such  questions  will  always  contain  elements  of  uncer- 
tainty, will  always  require  the  practical  skill  of  the  individual  educator 
and  will  always  receive  answers  that  will  vary  with  time  and  occasion." 

"Universally  valid  your  'system'  never  can  be;  therefore,  hold  it 
not  as  a  system.  But  universally  significant  your  scientific  insight  may 
become  to  you,  if  you  once  possess  it,  and  can  bear  in  mind  that  it  is 
after  all  abstract,  and  yet  noteworthy  as  an  abstraction.  Teachers, 
then,  do  need  a  scientific  training  for  their  calling.  Instinct,  unchast- 
ened  by  science,  is  blindly  self-confident,  and  when  it  goes  astray  its 
fall  from  grace  is  irreparable  ;  its  very  innocence  then  proves  its  doom. 
Teachers  who  know  nothing  of  the  reflective  aspects  of  their  calling, 
who  do  not  try  to  comprehend  as  well  as  to  love  their  pupils,  who 
despise  science  because  it  cannot  take  the  place  of  devotion  and  of 
instinct,  may  indeed  be  successful,  and,  in  any  case,  their  state,  so  long 
as  by  chance  they  do  not  go  far  astray,  is  vastly  better  than  the  present 
state  of  those  pedants  who  have  heard  of  modern  science,  of  nerve  cells, 
and  of  apperception,  and  who  forthwith  have  developed  or  copied  some 
hundreds  of  systematic  principles  of  '  Pedagogical  Method.'" 

With  most  of  the  statements  in  the  articles  referred  to,  and 
in  the  subsequent  writings  of  those  who  take  a  similar  nega- 
tive view — e.g.,  in  replies  quoted  p.  119 — I  heartily  agree,  but 
while  hesitating  to  differ  from  such  eminent  authorities  I  beg 
to  object  to  the  definition  of  science  upon  which  the  arguments 
seem  to  have  been  based  and  to  the  conclusions  deduced  there- 


8  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

from.  The  position  which  I  attempt  to  defend  is  that  such 
limited  static  view  of  science  is  incorrect  and  that  the  conclu- 
sions drawn  from  the  application  of  such  a  view  to  education 
are  untenable. 

1st.  Science  is  not  so  much  a  systematized  body  of  knowl- 
edge, "  universally  valid  "  and  finally  fixed,  as  it  is  an  accepted 
instrument  of  insight  to  furnish  control  over  future  experience. 
Nor  are  the  principles  of  educational  science  rules  to  be 
"copied  from  a  book"  and  immediately  applied  by  the  teacher 
without  reference  to  the  particular  conditions  of  the  "  time, 
nation,  family  and  child." 

Educational  theory  is  sometimes  thus  conceived  as  some- 
thing over  and  above  and  isolated  from  individual  experience, 
a  sort  of  educational  tourist  guidebook  which  when  once 
memorized  will  enable  the  teacher,  without  individual  appre- 
ciation, deliberation  or  selection,  to  locate  and  place  under 
the  proper  category  all  the  phenomena  of  the  classroom,  to 
advance  with  copyrighted,  ready-reckoner  methods  which  will 
cover  much  ground  in  little  time,  and  secure  magnificent 
examination  results;  a  pedagogical  doctor-book,  with  rules 
to  enable  one  to  diagnose  with  certainty  every  disease  and 
apply  the  only  possible  prescription  for  each  particular  case 
of  difficulty  as  it  arises. 

I  shall  endeavor  to  show  that  as  fact  and  law  are  but 
two  aspects  of  the  same  operation,  educational  theory  cannot 
thus  be  sundered  from  educational  practice  without  becoming 
static,  formal,  lifeless.  Educational  theory  is  not  so  much  a 
reflective  and  systematic  account  of  things,  a  systematized 
body  of  knowledge,  as  it  is  an  idea  of  something  to  be  done. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  education  in  general.  It  is  always 
this  particular  individual  who  has  to  be  considered  and  dealt 
with  under  these  conditions  at  this  present  moment.  There 
is  always  an  activity  possible  to  this  learner  which,  as  to  form 
and  content,  is  preferable  to  any  other  of  the  countless  courses 


Introduction. 


of  action  open  to  choice.  The  problem  is  always  how  to  reor- 
ganize this  present  experience  in  the  best  possible  way.  Our 
desire  is  to  know  this  specific  case  in  all  its  concreteness,  to 
investigate,  analyze,  clarify,  relate  it,  not  that  we  may  find 
some  abstract  rule  under  which  it  may  be  brought,  some  till 
into  which  it  may  be  pigeon-holed,  some  mold  in  which  it  may 
be  cast,  but  that  we  may  see  what  this  experience  really  is, 
that  we  may  recognize  the  relationships  in  hand  and  respond 
to  the  demands  of  these  relationships. 

Educational  theory  is  neither  more  nor  less  than  educational 
insight,  an  analytic  perception  of  the  conditions  and  relations 
involved  in  a  particular  case,  and  accordingly  the  criterion  of 
value  of  a  course  of  professional  training  must  always  be  the 
degree  in  which  it  enables  the  teacher  to  possess  such  clearer 
vision  for  the  reconstruction  of  each  new  breakdown  in 
experience. 

2nd.  Further,  it  is  often  urged  that  education  is  wholly  an 
art,  consisting  of  the  application  of  a  number  of  other  sciences 
— biology,  psychology,  ethics,  sociology,  etc.,  and  that  if  the 
teacher  has  attained  a  knowledge  of  these  cognate  sciences 
he  has  simply  to  apply  this  knowledge  when  he  comes  to 
teach.  The  view  taken  in  the  following  pages  is  that  educa- 
tion is  an  independent  science,  with  phenomena  and  laws 
peculiar  to  itself,  and  that  it  may  properly  be  considered  to 
depend  upon  other  sciences  only  in  such  a  sense  as  chemical 
science  may  be  said  to  depend  upon  mathematics. 

Educational  science  finds  its  focus  in  its  endeavor  to  gain 
control  of  the  educational  process.  It  views  from  this  focal 
standpoint  everything  in  proper  perspective.  It  casts  its 
tentacles  into  the  sea  of  all  auxiliary  science,  literature  and 
art,  and  appropriates  and  assimilates  that  which  is  best  fitted 
for  its  special  requirements.  It  possesses  a  technique  entirely 
different  from  that  of  any  other  science,  a  technique  which  can 
be  mastered  in  the  best  way  only  when  the  teacher  in  training 


10  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

studies  it  from  a  distinctly  educational  standpoint,  and  under 
conditions  which  furnish  opportunities  both  for  observation 
and  for  practice. 

3rd.  Again,  the  question  of  the  advisability  of  the  profes- 
sional preparation  of  teachers  is  frequently  discussed  as  though 
it  were  an  alternative  one  in  which  professional  training 
(usually  of  the  objectionable  type  to  which  allusion  has  been 
made),  on  the  one  hand,  is  arrayed  against  a  combination  of 
knowledge,  natural  aptitude  and  successful  experience,  on  the 
other.  My  contention  is  that  this  is  not  a  correct  or  adequate 
statement  of  the  problem,  but  that  the  real  question  at  issue 
is  to  what  extent,  if  any,  will  the  teacher  who  possesses  these 
preliminary  essentials  of  knowledge,  devotion,  instinct,  etc.,  be 
benefited  by  professional  training  conducted  in  a  scholarly 
spirit  and  accompanied  by  actual  contact  with  children. 

I  shall  not  attempt  to  defend  the  views  which  have  been 
assailed  in  the  cases  referred  to,  but  shall  endeavor  to  show 
that  in  regard  to  each  the  attack  has  been  made  upon  an 
empty  fortress.  Nor  do  I  claim  that  present  systems  of  train- 
ing are  perfect.  It  is  admitted  that  much  that  has  been 
written  under  the  guise  of  educational  science  is  anything  but 
scientific,  that  too  large  a  portion  of  what  has  been  proposed 
as  the  final  word  on  educational  method  is  valuable  only  as  a 
warning  of  method  not  to  be  followed,  and  that  it  is  possible 
for  a  certain  type  of  student  to  receive  so-called  professional 
training  without  gaining  that  culture  which  is  always  accom- 
panied by  the  grace  of  humility. 

There  are  graduates  of  teachers'  training-schools  for  whom 
the  clock  of  development  in  scholarship  and  culture  stopped 
on  the  day  when  they  received  their  diplomas.  They  never 
contribute  anything  to  the  cause  of  educational  advance  and 
the  value  of  their  schoolroom  work  varies  inversely  as  the 
length  of  their  experience.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are 
eminent  university  men  who  have  never  attended  any  institu- 


Introduction.  1 1 


u^  ^ 


tion  for  pedagogical  training,  who  nevertheless  in  addition  to 
the  study  and  research  work  which  have  made  them  famous 
in  their  special  departments  have  familiarized  themselves  with 
the  best  educational  literature  and  have  thought  profoundly 
on  educational  subjects.  Their  lectures  are  models  as  regards 
matter  and  method  and  their  utterances  on  educational  ques- 
tions have  deservedly  ranked  them  as  leaders  in  true  educa- 
tional reform.  The  assertion  that  the  former  are  trained 
teachers,  and  the  latter  untrained,  is  too  absurd  to  be  taken 
seriously.  A  specialist  is  not  one  who  "  says  that  he  is,"  nor 
yet  one  who  has  certificates  to  show  that  he  ought  to  be,  but 
rather  one  whose  actions  when  put  to  the  test,  demonstrate 
conclusively  that  he  is  master  of  the  situation. 

Perfection  consists  not  in  "a  having  and  a  resting,"  but  in 
"a  growing  and  a  becoming."  The  difficulty  of  professional 
training  consists  not  so  much  in  developing  a  teacher  who 
does  good  work  at  the  beginning  as  in  training  him  in  such  a 
manner  that,  possessing  elements  of  growth,  he  may  continue 
to  increase  in  efficiency  from  year  to  year. 

If  a  course  of  training  has  nothing  to  offer  but  a  number  of 
shibboleths  and  cut-and-dried  methods  of  doing  things,  based 
on  no  other  authority  than  that  someone  says  they  have 
worked  fairly  well  in  the  past,  it  will  be  of  little  benefit  to 
the  student.  On  the  other  hand,  if  during  a  professional 
training  course  the  teacher  gains  an  insight  which  will  enable 
him  to  originate  his  own  methods,  to  reconstruct  his  own 
experience  at  every  step  so  as  to  react  in  the  best  possible 
way,  and  also  at  the  same  time  gains  an  impulse  for  further 
development,  such  training  will  be  valuable  from  the  stand- 
points of  knowledge,  discipline  and  culture,  his  efficiency  as  a 
teacher  will  be  increased  many  times  over,  and  what  might 
have  proved  "  the  sorriest  of  trades  "  will  become  "  the  noblest 
of  professions." 

While  admitting  the  imperfection  of  prevailing  educational 
systems  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  observe  that  charges 


12  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

similar  to  the  foregoing  may  be  laid  at  the  door  of  every  other 
science  or  profession.  The  most  ardent  advocates  of  profes- 
sional training  for  teachers  are  foremost  in  the  demand  for 
the  correction  of  existing  evils,  and  it  is  probable  that  all 
who  have  observed  the  trend  of  events  will  admit  that  great 
reforms  are  being  accomplished.  It  is  hoped  that  the  following 
argument  may  prove  sufficiently  unprejudiced  and  practical 
to  serve  in  some  way  in  the  furtherance  of  such  advance  : 
General  Preliminary  Statement. — In  order  to  clear  the 
ground  for  future  discussion,  without  attempting  to  define 
precisely  the  necessary  qualifications  of  the  teacher  or  the 
course  of  study  most  appropriate  for  training-schools,  the  fol- 
lowing are  suggested  as  general  working  hypotheses  : — 

I.  Minimum  Teaching  Qualifications. 

(a)  That  elementary  school  teachers  possess  a  scholarship 

rank  equivalent  to  that  of  the  first  year  in  our  best 
universities,  and  high-school  teachers  to  that  of  the 
A.B.  degree. 

(b)  That  in  addition  to  the  foregoing  academic  qualification 

(before  receiving  a  permanent  certificate  to  teach)  two 
years  of  professional  preparation  be  demanded,  of 
which  at  least  one  year  be  spent  in  a  training-school 
(normal  school,  college  or  university)  and  the  remain- 
ing time  devoted  to  teaching  under  competent  super- 
vision. 

II.  Course  of  Study  in  Training-School. 

(a)  Philosophical  investigation   of  the  general  problem  of 

education. 

(b)  History  of  education — comparative  study  of  school  sys- 

tems. 

(c)  The  following  subjects  studied  from  the  standpoint  of 

education : 

1.  History  of  civilization. 

2.  Ethics,  sociology,  political  science. 

3.  Psychology  (genetic),  child-study,  biology,  physiology. 


Introduction.  1 3 


(d)  School  organization  and  supervision,  school  law. 

(e)  Study  of  educational  classics. 

(f)  Methodology    and    didactics ;  review  of  subjects  to  be 

taught. 

(g)  Study  of  subjects  necessary  for  the  teacher  but  not  pre- 

viously learned  ;  e.g.,  hygiene. 
(h)  Observation  and  teaching  in  practice  school. 
(i)  Experimentation  in  educational  laboratory  school. 


CHAPTER  II. 


THE    EMPIRICAL    OBJECTION. 


As  has  already  been  suggested  the  arguments  of  those  who 
answer  our  questions  regarding  the  possibility  of  a  science  of 
education  in  the  negative,  naturally  fall  under  two  heads  : 
(1)  That  from  the  inherent  nature  of  science  and  of  education 
no  science  of  education  is  possible.  (2)  That  on  the  side  of 
experience  the  attempt  to  give  professional  training  to  teachers 
is  an  attempt  to  substitute  such  training  for  what  is  more 
important  and  valuable,  an  attempt  which  is,  therefore,  certain 
to  be  disastrous  to  the  highest  efficiency. 

I  hope  that  in  the  discussion  of  the  first  objection,  which  is 
fundamental,  the  second,  which  is  a  development  from  it,  will 
largely  disappear.  However,  as  the  latter,  which  may  be 
called  the  empirical  form  of  objection,  is  the  one  which  is 
usually  first  presented  I  shall  refer  briefly  to  several  popular 
criticisms  concerning  it  before  proceeding  to  the  main  discus- 
sion of  the  first  objection,  which  will  be  taken  in  succeeding 
chapters.* 

1st.  When  a  plea  is  made  for  the  professional  training  of 
teachers  it  is  sometimes  urged  in  opposition  that  such  a  plea 
is  based  upon  a  desire  to  give  to  teaching  a  standing — social 
and  scientific — to  which  in  the  very  nature  of  things  it  is  not 
entitled,  that  there  is  not,  and  never  can  be,  a  separate 
profession  of  teaching. 

If  the  objection  were  simply  one  of  social  hierarchy  it  need 
not  cause  special   concern  in  this   democratic   age.     But  the 

•See  article  on  "The  Study  of  Education,"  by  Prof .  Findlay,  Government  Educational 
Report,  London,  Enj;.,  Vol.  U,  p.  888. 


The  Empirical  Objection.  15 

objection  lias  a  much  more  important  bearing,  for  this  view 
that  "  anybody  can  teach  school,  that  no  professional  prepara- 
tion is  necessary,  that  if  a  person  can  show  that  he  has  more 
knowledge  than  those  to  be  taught  it  is  quite  safe  to  turn 
him  loose  upon  a  class,"  when  applied  in  educational  affairs 
produces  two  disastrous  results. 

(a)  It  reduces  the  remuneration  for  teaching  to  the  level 
of  that  for  unskilled  labor.  Indeed,  it  reaches  a  much  lower 
limit,  especially  in  primary  work,  where  according  to  the 
opinion  of  many  advocates  of  this  theory  "  the  knowledge  to 
be  poured  in  is  easily  gained  and  the  hours  are  fewer  than 
those  for  a  domestic  servant."  The  reference  on  page  2  to 
the  case  where  in  a  comparatively  wealthy  community  the 
teacher  is  paid  only  eight  dollars  a  month  is  an  illustration 
of  this  fact. 

(6)  It  places  incompetent  teachers  in  the  schools.  As  I 
shall  endeavor  to  establish,  in  every  grade  of  educational  work 
from  the  kindergarten  to  the  university,  and  more  particularly 
on  the  elementary  levels,  there  is  a  certain  scientific  attitude 
which  is  necessary  for  highest  educational  achievement,  and 
which  cannot  be  gained  without  careful  and  long,  continued 
preparation  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  This  is  an  age  of 
specialists,  and  the  best  men  are  not  likely  to  enter  or  con- 
tinue in  a  work  where,  according  to  accepted  public  sentiment, 
there  are  no  fields  for  research  nor  any  criteria  for  advance- 
ment, and  where  the  salaries  are  insufficient  to  provide  even 
the  simplest  necessities  of  life.  Such  deflection  is  more  appar- 
ent in  the  case  of  elementary  schools,  but  cannot  fail  to  be  felt 
in  other  lines  of  educational  work  as  well.  The  whole  tend- 
ency of  the  objection,  is,  therefore,  to  debar  teaching  from 
attaining  the  high  standard  of  efficiency  which  it  might  other- 
wise reach,  by  preventing  from  engaging  therein  any  but  those 
of  mediocre  ability  who  could  not  succeed  in  other  more 
remunerative  employments. 


16  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

The  objection  to  the  possibility  of  raising  teaching  to  the 
status  of  a  profession  often  arises  from  an  entirely  different 
standpoint,  however  (a  scholarly  one),  when  it  is  argued  that 
"a  university  man  who  has  received  a  liberal  education  is 
ipso  facto  qualified  to  enter  upon  other  careers  in  life."  In  so 
far  as  this  means  that  as  a  preparation  for  life  university 
scholarship  and  culture  are  invaluable  the  statement  is 
undoubtedly  true.  It  is  worthy  of  notice  that  this  argument 
was  used  against  the  proposal  to  demand  professional  prepara- 
tion for  law  and  for  medicine,  and  has  been  abandoned  in  these 
cases  as  it  will  eventually  be  as  regards  teaching.  The  recent 
union  of  the  secondary  teachers  of  England  in  the  formation 
of  a  profession,  the  resolutions  of  the  Cambridge  Conference 
in  favor  of  the  training  of  teachers,  and  the  adoption  of  pro- 
fessional training  of  teachers  by  the  governments  of  the  most 
advanced  nations,  e.g.,  Great  Britain,  France,  Germany  and 
the  United  States  of  America,  are  indications  that  this  objec- 
tion is  now  generally  regarded  as  practically  untenable. 

2nd.  The  objection  is  sometimes  made  "  that  professionally- 
trained  teachers  are  little  or  no  better  than  untrained,  that 
they  are  apt  to  be  mechanical  and  unpractical,  and  to  be 
lacking  in  originality  and  initiative."  Such  a  statement  can 
scarcely  be  verified  or  disproved  by  experiment.  The  facts, 
however,  that  the  testimony  of  school  supervisors  is  almost 
entirely  against  the  objection,  and  that  public  sentiment, 
which  does  not  continue  to  invest  money  for  fads  after  they 
have  been  put  to  actual  test  for  many  years,  is  steadily  giving 
more  attention  to  the  subject  and  support  to  such  training, 
would  seem  to  cast  doubt  upon  the  general  accuracy  of  the 
statement. 

The  failure  of  a  professionally-trained  teacher  is  usually 
traceable  either  to  a  lack  of  aptitude  or  of  preparation  on 
entering  the  training-school,  or  to  the  inadequacy  of  the  train- 
ing given  therein.     That  such   failure   sometimes  does  occur 


The  Empirical  Objection.  17 

emphasizes  the  fact  that  one  of  the  duties  of  such  a  school  is 
to  see  that  those  who  are  not  naturally  fitted  for  teaching, 
or  who  are  illiterate  or  unworthy,  are  there  directed  into  more 
appropriate  lines  of  work. 

3rd.  The  main  objection  made  by  scholarly  men  against 
professional  training  is,  however,  the  one  which  in  different 
forms  appears  so  often  in  the  replies  received  (p.  119),  viz., 
"  that  if  we  demand  professional  training  the  knowledge  and 
culture  standard  of  teachers  will  be  lowered."  In  reply  the 
following  points  are  submitted  as  worthy  of  consideration  : — 

(a)  Underlying  this  objection  there  usually  rests  the  oft- 
repeated  assumption  that  "if  a  teacher  knows  his  subject 
well  he  can  teach  it  properly." 

Probably  no  other  view  regarding  education  is  so  wide- 
spread and  at  the  same  time  so  opposed  to  the  facts  of  every- 
day experience.  To  take  a  familiar  example,  a  person  may 
know  the  way  from  his  house  to  the  railway  station  so  well  as 
to  walk  the  whole  distance  in  the  dark  and  yet  be  entirely 
unable,  without  careful  reflection,  to  direct  a  stranger  over 
the  same  road.  A  thoughtful,  subsequent  analysis  of  the 
explanation  which  one  gives  on  such  occasions  usually  proves 
a  source  of  astonishment  to  himself,  and  the  interpretation 
put  upon  his  directions  by  his  auditor,  whose  attitude  he  has 
not  considered,  is  even  a  greater  surprise  to  him.  The  more 
reflex  and  habitual  the  activity  of  the  journey  has  become  the 
more  likely  is  he  to  offer  rapidly  a  few  random  and  unrelated 
directions,  concluding  with  the  illuminating  phrase,  "You 
can't  miss  it."  The  comparison  of  such  explanation  with  the 
explanations  given  by  many  teachers  to  their  students  is  not 
inappropriate.  It  will  be  admitted  by  many  that  it  would  be 
difficult  to  find  teaching  anywhere  inferior  to  that  done  in 
many  universities  by  young  men  with  brilliant  records  for 
scholarship.  A  well-known  university  president  of  long 
experience    recently    made    the    significant    remark    that    he 


18  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

thought  "  no  instructor  without  previous  teaching  experience 
should  be  appointed  on  a  university  staff  until  three  years  had 
elapsed  after  receiving  his  doctor's  degree  in  order  to  allow 
him  to  come  to  earth  again  and  to  win  his  spurs  in  a  less 
responsible  position." 

Again,  the  born  teacher  who  is  a  profound  scholar,  but  who 
has  never  thought  upon  educational  problems,  may,  with  the 
best  possible  intentions,  use  these  special  powers  in  such  a  way 
as  to  lead  to  failure.  His  vigorous  personality,  unbounded 
enthusiasm  and  apparently  exhaustless  resources  of  knowl- 
edge, render  his  classroom  work  a  spontaneous  overflow.  His 
students  are  carried  along  as  with  a  flood.  Admiration  and 
love  give  place  to  something  akin  to  reverence.  As  was  recently 
remarked  in  a  public  eulogy  upon  such  a  teacher,  "  His 
students  had  such  implicit  confidence  in  his  knowledge,  and 
such  reverence  for  his  opinion,  that  after  leaving  him  they  no 
longer  cared  to  think  for  themselves.  They  were  satisfied 
with  the  conclusions  reached  by  a  mind  so  much  superior  to 
their  own,  possessing  a  grasp  and  insight  which  they  realized 
was  so  far  in  advance  of  anything  they  could  ever  hope  to 
attain." 

Now,  my  argument  for  professional  training  is  not  one 
which  would  minimize  in  the  slightest  degree  the  incalculable 
worth  of  such  teachers.  It  holds  that  upon  such  a  type  the 
hope  for  the  future  of  a  country  largely  rests,  and  that  no 
money  is  an  adequate  remuneration  for  such  service.  But  it 
contends  that  the  type  is  improved  by  training,  that  in  the 
case  referred  to  if  the  distinguished  professor  had  spent  some 
time  in  the  consideration  of  educational  problems  he  would 
have  seen  that  all  true  education  must  be  self-education,  that 
one  of  the  important  things  to  be  considered  is  how  to  have 
students  form  a  habit  of  "  thinking  for  themselves,"  and  that 
it  is  a  somewhat  serious  matter  to  find  students  standing  erect 
and  to  leave  them  abjectly  following  on  all  fours. 


The  Empirical  Objection.  19 

This  argument  is  no  plea  for  ignorance  on  the  part  of  the 
teacher.  The  contention  of  Jacotot  and  others  that  "one  can 
teach  what  one  does  not  know  "  is,  except  in  a  very  limited 
sense,  undoubtedly  incorrect.  Other  things  being  equal  the 
teacher  of  high  culture  and  scholarship  will  always  be  a  better 
teacher  than  one  of  lower  scholarship,  but  professional  training 
must  not  be  omitted  from  the  original  equation.  It  will  be 
noted  that  in  the  course  outlined  on  p.  12  it  is  assumed  as 
a  basis  for  this  argument  that  a  minimum  scholarship  pre- 
requisite should  be  demanded — of  first  year  in  an  accredited 
university  for  elementary  teachers,  and  of  the  A.  13.  degree  for 
high-school  teachers. 

It  is  often  justly  urged  that  many  of  the  best  teachers  did 
not  receive  professional  training.  While  admitting  the  force 
of  this  objection  we  do  well  to  remember  two  things :  (1)  The 
real  question  at  issue  is  not  did  these  teachers  excel  others, 
but  rather  would  these  teachers  who  were  so  signally  successful 
without  professional  training  have  been  still  better  teachers  if 
they  had  received  such  training ;  and  (2),  in  the  majority  of 
cases,  these  teachers  possessed  special  opportunities  which  in 
a  way  furnished  a  substitute  for  such  training. 

In  discussing  this  point  Professor  Findlay  says,  "  The 
conclusion  we  draw  is  that  some  training  is  necessary  to 
widen  the  mind  and  deepen  the  insight,  even  in  the  case  of 
teachers  gifted  largely  with  sympathetic  instincts,  but  such 
training  is  helpful  only  if  it  is  conducted  in  close  association 
with  the  life  of  children.  This  association  must  be  intimate 
and  continuous ;  casual  lessons  to  strange  children,  odd  visits 
to  educational  institutions,  are  of  little  advantage.  It  is  worth 
observing  that  some  of  the  most  distinguished  educational 
reformers  owe  much  to  opportunities  of  this  description. 
Arnold  when  at  Rugby  displayed  a  wonderful  understanding 
of  the  nature  of  sixth-form  boys ;  it  is  sometimes  forgotten 
that  he   had   gained   this   experience  by  his   life  at  Laleham 


20  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

with  a  few  boys  at  a  time.  Herbart  had  a  similar  experience 
as  a  tutor  in  the  Stelger  family ;  Froebel  had  charge  of  some 
of  his  nephews  in  the  early  part  of  his  career,  and  Locke's 
philosophy  of  education  was  the  outcome  of  his  observations 
on  one  or  two  pupils." 

(b)  Further,  it  would  be  a  sad  commentary  upon  a  training- 
school  if  it  could  be  truly  said  that  it  did  not  in  any  way 
provide  what  a  college  course  stands  for.  The  subject  is  too 
extended  for  discussion  here,  but  it  is  probable  that  those 
who  are  familar  with  the  facts  will  agree  that  in  the  best 
professional  training-schools  the  culture  effect  as  regards 
both  discipline  and  knowledge  is  equal  to  that  of  some  col- 
leges. The  university  student  pursuing  a  post-graduate  course 
in  education  does  not  find  courses  on  the  history  or  philosophy 
of  education  or  on  school  organization,  when  treated  by  able 
professors,  to  be  less  scholarly  or  productive  than  those  which 
he  takes  in  other  departments. 

(c)  Finally,  this  objection  assumes  that  the  time  taken  for 
professional  training  will  be  subtracted  from  that  which 
would  otherwise  be  devoted  to  scholarship  training ;  e.g.,  it 
assumes  that  a  student  in  training  for  the  position  of  teacher 
in  a  high  school  would  substitute  for  one  year  of  college  work 
the  year  of  professional  training  demanded.  This  hypothesis 
is,  in  my  opinion,  not  verified  by  the  results  of  school  experi- 
ence. The  subject  is  a  very  wide  and  complex  one  containing 
many  elements  for  consideration — e.g.,  the  fact  that  the  new 
conditions  tend  toward  making  teaching  a  profession  with  a 
higher  class  of  talent  and  better  remuneration,  thus  making 
it  a  possible  life  pursuit,  would  be  a  spur  to  better  prepara- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  teacher. 

With  a  view  to  finding  what  actually  does  occur  under  such 
circumstances  I  have  taken  as  an  illustration  the  case  of  the 
high-school  teachers  of  the  Province  of  Ontario,  Canada.* 

•Under  the  headof  hij;h  schools  are  included  tolleuiate  institutes  which  are  advanced 
hi«h  schools. 


The  Empirical  Objection.  21 

The  first  time  that  professional  qualification  of  any  kind 
was  demanded  of  high-school  teachers  in  Ontario  was  in  the 
year  1885  when  a  course  of  training  of  about  four  months 
was  rendered  compulsory  bv  government  regulation.  This 
law  continued  in  force  with  slight  alteration  until  1893 
when  the  course  was  extended  to  a  full  year's  attendance 
at  the  Ontario  Normal  College,  and  this  is  still  the  require- 
ment. At  no  time  has  it  been  compulsory  for  a  student  of 
the  Normal  College  or  a  teacher  in  a  high  school,  with  the 
exception  of  headmaster,  to  hold  an  arts  degree.  In  the 
year  1893  there  were  344  high-school  teachers  who  possessed 
A.B.  degrees  and  190  who  did  not.  In  1900  there  were  4  27 
who  possessed  A.B.  degrees  and  190  who  did  not. 

Now,  the  example  from  1893  to  1900  is  exceptionally  appli- 
cable to  this  investigation.  A  full  year  of  attendance  was 
demanded  with  subsequent  interim  teaching.  The  regulation 
was  applied  under  the  same  conditions  for  the  succeeding 
seven  years,  and  it  was  at  the  student's  option  to  enter  with 
or  without  the  A.B.  degree.  During  these  seven  years  we 
find  an  increase  of  eighty-three  teachers  who  hold  A.B.  degrees 
and  no  increase  in  the  number  of  those  who  do  not. 

The  following  statement  from  a  high  educational  authority 
in  Ontario  describes  the  existing  conditions  : — 

"The  indications  are  that  we  shall  soon  have  a  regulation  making 
university  degrees  and  graduation  at  the  Normal  College  imperative  on 
every  high-school  teacher.  After  sixteen  years  of  professional  training 
of  high-school  teachers  there  are  more  honor  graduates  in  the  high 
schools  than  at  any  former  period  of  its  history.  Further,  a  glance  at 
the  curriculum  of  each  of  the  various  universities  will  show  that  the 
academic  standard  has  not  been  lowered,  but  rather  increased.  The 
idea  that  scholarship  is  lowered  as  professional  training  is  increased 
cannot  be  considered  as  even  a  reasonable  assumption." 

The  discussion  in  this  chapter  tends  to  show  that  with 
a  rational  system  of  professional  training,  and  with  its  aims 
ami  methods  clearly  understood  by  the  general  public,  all  such 
empirical  objections  woidd  disappear. 


CHAPTER   III. 

THE    DYNAMIC    CONCEPTION    OF    SCIENCE. 

Let  us  now  return  to  a  consideration  of  the  main  objection — 
that  from  the  inherent  nature  of  science  and  of  education  no 
science  of  education  is  possible.  In  our  discussion  everything 
depends  upon  what  is  meant  by  science  and  education.  It  is 
therefore  necessary  to  find  some  satisfactory  working  agree- 
ment regarding  the  force  of  each  of  these  terms. 

The  generally-accepted  definition  of  science  is  that  "  it  is  a 
collection  of  the  general  principles  or  leading  truths  relating 
to  any  subject  arranged  in  systematic  order."  The  static 
interpretation  often  put  upon  this  definition  by  those  who 
have  discussed  the  subject  of  educational  science  is  inadequate 
to  the  full  meaning  of  the  term.  True  science  is  essentially 
teleological  in  character ;  it  possesses  a  systematized  body  of 
knowledge,  but  systematized  as  instruments  for  the  recon- 
struction of  future  experience.  Facts,  if  there  be  such,  which 
are  fixed  and  unchanging,  which  exist  outside  of  consciousness 
and  which  do  not  lead  anywhere,  are  in  no  sense  scientific  no 
matter  how  thoroughly  systematized,  universal  or  absolute 
they  may  be  considered  to  be.  While  taking  this  position  it 
is  not  implied  that  abstraction,  generalization,  systematization 
and  law,  are  terms  to  be  discarded  in  scientific  procedure  ;  it  is 
only  in  regard  to  the  true  significance  of  the  terms  that  there 
is  difference  of  opinion. 

I  hope  to  show  that  educational  science  possesses  a  body 
of  systematized  knowledge  arrived  at  by  processes  of  experi- 
mentation, abstraction,  generalization,  etc.,  but  that  such 
educational  theory  and  the  mode  of  its  genesis  must  be  looked 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science.  23 

upon  from  the  standpoint  of  function.  As  this  distinction  is 
vital  to  the  discussion  in  hand  I  shall  enter  into  a  brief 
explanation  of  the  superiority  of  the  dynamic  conception  as 
compared  with  the  static,  and  afterwards  endeavor  to  show 
the  bearing  of  the  discussion  upon  the  further  educational 
problem. 

Two  clearly-differentiated  views  have  been  held  regarding  the 
meaning  of  the  term  "scientific."  The  first  view  is  dualistic. 
It  deals  with  types  and  categories  and  draws  a  definite  line 
of  demarcation  between  theory  and  practice.  It  views  science 
as  an  organized  body  of  knowledge,  over  and  above  and  inde- 
pendent of  individual  experience,  a  series  of  fixed  general- 
izations existing  entirely  isolated  from  the  particular.  It 
holds  that  the  criterion  of  science  consists  in  the  independence 
and  finality  of  the  facts  obtained,  and  depreciates  the  func- 
tional value  of  such  facts ;  e.g.,  Whewell  (Novum  Organum 
Renovation,  p.  242)  says  : — "  It  is  said  with  a  feeling  of 
triumph  that  knowledge  is  power  ;  but  in  whatever  sense  this 
may  truly  be  said  we  value  knowledge  not  because  it  is  power 
but  because  it  is  knowledge,  and  we  wrongly  estimate  both 
the  nature  and  the  dignity  of  that  kind  of  science  with  which 
we  are  concerned  [inductive]  if  we  expect  that  every  new 
advance  in  theory  will  forthwith  have  a  market  value." 

The  second  view,  and  the  one  substantially  adhered  to  in 
this  thesis,  is  teleological,  dynamic,  functional.  It  holds  that 
it  is  impossible  to  divorce  theory  from  practice.  Scientific 
theory  is  always  the  theory  of  practice.  It  is  the  recognition 
of  the  relationships  in  hand,  the  cross-section  of  the  given 
state  of  action  to  know  what  should  be  done.  Everything 
would  be  indifferent  if  it  were  not  for  ends.  The  object  of 
scientific  investigation  is  to  state  controlling  factors  in  the 
realization  of  ends.  Science  is  necessary  in  order  to  economize 
effort,  to  determine  the  character  of  the  ends  proposed,  to 
clear  up  the  direction  of  the  forward  movement  of  experience. 


24  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

According  to  this  conception  of  science  the  view  taken  by 
Whewell  in  the  foregoing  quotation  is  incorrect ;  on  the  con- 
trary, "  we  value  knowledge  "  chiefty  because  it  is  power  and 
not  because  it  is  knowledge.  A  fact  which  will  never  be  of 
value  in  any  way  in  future  reconstruction  is  not  worthy  of 
high  appreciation,  nor  is  it  really  a  scientific  fact.  We  value 
truth  because  the  "  truth  has  power  to  make  us  free,"  i.e., 
because  it  will  enable  us  to  rise  superior  to  further  obstacles. 
Nor  does  such  value  necessarily  mean  "market  value."  The 
mathematician  who  seeks  truth  for  its  own  sake  in  the  realm 
of  pure  abstraction  may  be  lifted  far  above  all  commercial  con- 
siderations ;  nevertheless  his  work  is  purposive.  He  values 
each  new  discovery  mainly  because  of  its  relation  to  the  past 
and  future,  because  it  enables  him  to  play  the  mathematical 
game  (if  I  may  be  allowed  the  expression)  in  a  new  and  better 
way. 

Scientific  definition  is  a  description  of  genesis.  The  mode 
of  genesis  in  mathematical  science  is  direct ;  in  experimental 
science  indirect,  but  the  method  of  the  idea  is  the  same  in 
both.  We  do  not  proceed  from  individual  to  universal,  but 
from  individual  to  individual  through  the  universal.  Mere 
sequence  gives  us  nothing.  By  studying  antecedent  and  sub- 
sequent events  in  experimental  science  we  arrive  at  law, 
corresponding  to  a  principle  of  construction  in  mathematics; 
e.g.,  in  physical  science  the  principle  of  the  conservation  of 
energy,  and  in  mathematics  the  general  equation  of  the  curve. 
Further,  law  is  more  than  a  mere  description  of  what  has 
happened  ;  it  has  a  teleological  implication.  It  is  an  abstrac- 
tion made  for  the  purpose  of  enabling  us  to  control  future 
experience.  It  owes  its  interest  and  its  formation  to  this  fact. 
It  is  hypothetical  and  has  normative  value  the  moment  it  is 
recognized  and  stated.  Its  value  lies  in  enabling  us  to  get  rid 
of  confusion  and  irrelevant  circumstances,  and  to  simplify  the 
process  in  the  future.     The  moment  you  state  the  reasoning 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science.  -J-"> 

process  you  get  a  rule,  a  something  that  helps  for  the  next 
time. 

The  scientific  attitude  arose  in  the  attempt  to  control  proc- 
esses of  observation  and  interpretation,  and  to  avoid  error 
and  get  at  a  maximum  of  certainty.  In  all  true  scientific 
procedure,  description  and  interpretation  merge  into  each 
other.  Any  complete  description  is  a  statement  of  law,  and 
the  interrelations  expressed  by  law  are  only  enlarged  and 
extended  descriptions.  Take,  e.g.,  the  case  of  a  child  who 
is  placed  under  unhygienic  schoolroom  conditions  likely  to 
develop  myopia.  A  complete  examination  and  description 
would  include  a  synthesis  of  relevant  conditions,  fine  print  of 
text-book,  distance  of  eye  from  book,  blackboard,  etc.,  together 
with  changing  bodily  conditions;  e.g.,  increasing  convexity  of 
cornea  or  anterior  surface  of  lens.  As  fast  as  in  our  analysis 
we  exclude  irrelevant  terms,  e.g.,  the  child's  power  of  taste 
discrimination,  we  get  a  connection  of  relevant  terms  which 
applies  beyond  the  immediate  particular  case  described.  If 
this  relation  really  exists  here  it  will  exist  elsewhere  under 
exactly  similar  conditions.  If  such  conditions  are  not  attended 
by  myopic  development  elsewhere  they  will  not  be  here. 

Anything  like  an  adequate  statement  and  defense  of  the 
dynamic  theory  would  lead  us  far  into  the  realms  of  psychology, 
logic  and  metaphysics,  and  I  must  refer  the  reader  to  the 
writings  of  abler  critics  who  have  dealt  with  the  subject  in 
detail.*  In  the  hope,  however,  of  making  my  position  suffi- 
ciently clear  for  the  purpose  in  hand  I  shall  examine  some- 
what closely  a  definite  example  which  may  serve  to  illustrate 
the  application  of  the  dynamic  conception  to  the  analysis  of 
the  thought  process,  and  the  way  in  which  educational  theory, 
immediately  pertaining  to  the  subject  of  school  classification, 
may  be  discovered  and  applied. 

*I  desire  to  express  my  indebtedness  to  Professor  Dewey  for  assistance  derived  from 
his  elaboration  of  this  view  in  a  course  of  unpublished  lectures  in  logic  at  the  Univer- 
sity of  Chicago. 


26  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

Take,  for  illustration,  the  case  of  a  school  principal  who  is 
assigning  a  new  pupil  to  a  class  in  his  school  and  who  forms 
the  judgment,   "This  is  a  fourth-grade  pupil." 

Static  View. — Let  us  first  brief!}7  consider  a  purely  mechan- 
ical mode  of  classification.  The  highest  aim  of  the  school 
principal  may  be  to  secure  a  certain  fixed  remuneration  in 
return  for  certain  work  outlined  in  an  agreement  with  a  board 
of  education.  The  classification  of  pupils  is  included  in  this 
work.  In  so  far  as  he  has  considered  the  subject  at  all  he 
thinks  that  children  are  placed  in  different  grades  because 
custom  has  so  decided  and  because  such  classification  saves 
trouble.  A  fourth-grade  pupil  is  to  him  simply  one  who  has 
gone  through  the  first  three  grades,  or  who  can  pass  a  certain 
fixed  entrance  examination  standard.  This  new  pupil  is  a 
something  to  be  assigned  to  a  certain  class  as  a  botanist  may 
assign  a  dead  plant  of  a  certain  order  to  the  corresponding 
shelf  in  his  herbarium.  It  is  so  much  child  partially  filled 
with  knowledge  and  requiring  pathological  treatment  in  the 
way  of  more  filling.  The  fourth  grade  is  a  place  where  such 
pupils  are  put  through  a  process  by  which  at  the  end  of  a 
certain  fixed  period  they  will  know  one  third  more  than  they 
did  when  they  entered.  Accordingly  the  pupil  is  given  a 
hurried  examination  and  forthwith  "subsumed"  under  the 
fourth-grade  "category"  and  becomes  number  so  and  so  in 
the  fourth  grade. 

The  example  is  not  overdrawn.  I  have  known  cases  where 
pupils  were  assigned  to  a  lower  grade  than  that  for  which 
they  were  fitted,  solely  because  there  were  more  vacant  seats 
in  the  lower  grade  than  in  the  proper  room. 

Again,  the  principal  may  have  taken  a  long  pedagogical 
training  and  still  make  a  static  classification ;  e.g.,  he  may 
have  read  or  heard  someone  say  that  the  fourth  grade  should 
contain  pupils  between  the  ages  of  eleven  and  thirteen  years 
and  may  mechanically  construct  the  following  formal  syllo- 
■_'i    in  : 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science.  27 

All  pupils  between  the  ages  of  eleven  and  thirteen  should 
be  assigned  to  the  fourth  grade. 

This  pupil  is  within  this  age  limit. 

This  pupil  should  be  assigned  to  the  fourth  grade. 
In  this  way  while  nominally  making  a  rational  classification 
he  may  in  reality  be  making  a  most  irrational  one. 

Dynamic  View. — The  fundamental  difference  between  such 
static  method  and  a  dynamic  method  originates  in  the  fact 
that  any  judgment  in  order  to  possess  value  must  have  arisen 
out  of  a  necessity  for  the  reconstruction  of  experience.  There 
must  have  been  a  breakdown  of  the  old  and  a  building  up  of  a 
new  system.  If  such  were  not  the  case  there  would  have  been 
no  interest,  no  attention,  and  the  judgment  would  not  have 
been  made.  The  school  principal  deals  with  the  problem  pro- 
posed because  its  solution  is  necessary  for  the  furtherance  of 
some  end  which  he  has  in  view.  He  may,  as  in  the  foregoing 
static  example,  classify  the  pupil  simply  because  he  knows  that 
he  cannot  receive  his  salary  unless  he  performs  such  acts,  and 
may  care  nothing  in  regard  to  how  the  pupil  or  society  may 
be  affected  by  the  classification  he  makes. 

The  school  principal  who  classifies  on  a  dynamic  basis  also 
finds  reconstruction  of  experience  necessary,  but  he  approaches 
the  subject  from  an  entirely  different  standpoint.  His  aim  is 
well  considered,  worthy  and  adequate,  and  his  interest  in  the 
problem  involves  the  highest  ethical  considerations.  His 
immediate  aim  may  be  to  have  his  school  thoroughly  organ- 
ized and  every  pupil  properly  occupied.  The  coming  of  the 
new  pupil  introduces  an  obstacle  to  the  attainment  of  this 
end.  Further,  this  unclassified  pupil  represents  the  point  of 
experience  where  there  is  the  greatest  break,  the  greatest 
need  of  reconstruction.  There  may  be  numerous  obstacles,  and 
insight  is  required  to  select  the  point  of  greatest  stress ;  e.g., 
if  the  school  fire-alarm  rings  at  the  time  when  the  new  pupil 
appears,  and  the   principal  proceeds  to  classify  the  pupil  in 


28  T/<e  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

place  of  responding  to  the  alarm  and  making  the  judgment, 
"This  building  is  on  fire!"  his  judgment,  "This  is  a  fourth- 
grade  pupil,"  while  quite  correct  from  a  static  standpoint  is 
false  from  a  functional,  dynamic  standpoint  because  it  does  not 
meet  the  requirements  of  the  case.  Each  situation  emerges 
out  of  the  one  which  immediately  preceded  it  and  which  has 
broken  down.  At  first  there  is  a  vague,  undifferentiated  whole 
of  experience  consisting  of  principal,  child,  school,  etc.  When 
the  principal  begins  to  realize  that  experience  needs  readjust- 
ment, that  there  is  resistance  to  the  habitual  flow,  a  difficulty 
to  be  overcome,  an  investigation  to  be  made,  then  the  situa- 
tion begins  to  become  defined  and  to  take  the  differentiated 
form  of  a  boy  to  be  classified,  and  aids  to  classification.  The 
principal  then  adjusts  himself  to  the  problem  in  hand.  The 
pupil  is  no  longer  a  boy  bringing  a  telegram,  etc.  He  is  now 
a  boy  to  be  classified.  The  principal  is  no  longer  the  school 
principal  with  various  duties,  any  of  which  may  engage  his 
attention.      He  is  for  the  time  being  the  classifier  of  this  pupil. 

In  this  defining  process,  however,  we  do  not  have,  as  the 
static  theory  assumes,  on  the  one  hand,  "  this  bo}r  consisting 
of  a  small  isolated  fragment  of  the  universe,"  and,  on  the 
other  hand,  the  formal  concept  of  "  a  fourth-grade  pupil "  to 
which  this  fragment  is  to  be  attached.  What  we  really  have 
is  a  forward  movement  of  experience.  "  The  this,  the  here, 
the  now,"  emerging  problematically  out  of  a  previous  situation 
and  moving  on  to  a  solution,  locate  the  point  at  which  thought 
is  to  be  directed  and  reveal  the  obstacle  which  must  be  over- 
come. It  is  this  boy  who  must  be  classified  before  the  school 
will  be  properly  organized.  Further,  "the  this,  here,  and 
now  "  represents  the  entire  system  focused.  This  boy  to  be 
classified  is  related  to  everything  else  in  the  universe.  This 
classification  habit  which  the  principal  brings  into  play  is 
related   to  all  previous  experience. 

A  dynamic  method  of  classification  is  based  upon  a  principle 
of  rational  adaptation.     ( >n  the  one  hand,  there  is  the  child — 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  .Science.  2'J 

a  living,  self-active  personality  with  certain  needs,  desires, 
emotions,  habits.  lie  reacts  differently  to  different  stimuli 
and  his  development  will  be  largely  conditioned  by  his  school 
environments.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  available  various 
classes,  teachers,  etc.  The  purpose  of  classification  is  to  place 
him  in  such  a  position  in  the  system  that  under  the  changed 
conditions  he  may  function  at  his  best.  It  is  a  matter  of 
great  importance  to  the  child  and  to  society  that  he  be  located 
at  the  proper  place.  A  mistake  here  is  a  mistake  for  life. 
The  duty  of  the  school  principal  is  to  make  the  best  of  the 
means  at  his  command.  There  may  be  no  class  in  his  school 
exactly  fitted  to  this  boy's  requirements,  but  of  those  at  his 
disposal  there  is  one  which  is  the  best  fitted,  and  it  is  his 
business  to  endeavor  to  modify  the  modes  of  reaction  already 
present  so  as  to  fit  the  requirements  of  this  particular  case. 
If  he  is  bound  by  habit — if  he  can  classify  only  such  boys 
as  he  has  classified  in  the  past — he  misses  the  characteristic 
features  of  the  new  situation.  It'  he  has  no  habits  at  all — if 
he  possesses  no  knowledge  of  classification — he  is  helpless  and 
can  do  nothing.  In  making  the  classification  everything 
depends  upon  the  power  of  insight  which  the  school  principal 
brings  to  bear  upon  the  problem. 

In  our  example  we  have,  on  the  one  hand,  the  presentative 
element — the  pupil  to  be  classified ;  and,  on  the  other,  the 
representative  element — experience  which  will  serve  to  facili- 
tate this  classification. 

In  the  defining-relating,  analytic-synthetic,  inductive-deduc- 
tive, forward  movement  of  attention,  there  is  a  constant 
interaction  between  these  two  elements.  The  orderly  system 
of  imagery,  which  the  experienced  principal  brings  to  bear  in 
testing  and  elaborating  the  presentational  experience,  serves 
as  a  standard,  a  scale,  a  tool,  in  reconstruction.  It  enables 
him  to  determine  what  to  select,  and  how  far  back  to  go  in  the 
selection.      He  goes  far  enough  back  to  get  a  firm  footing — a 


30  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

reliable  basis  for  future  procedure.  He  selects  according 
to  the  emergencies  of  the  case  what  he  deems  useful  and 
necessary.  He  does  not  endeavor  to  learn  all  about  the  boy, 
but  only  that  which  serves  functionally  for  present  classifica- 
tion;  e.g.,  the  color  of  the  boy's  eyes  may  be  unnoticed 
while  his  knowledge  of  arithmetic  is  carefully  tested.  While 
looking  backward  there  is  at  the  same  time  a  forward  look, 
and  there  are  several  hypotheses  in  the  foreground  of  the 
principal's  consciousness,  each  struggling  for  confirmation. 
From  his  first  casual  investigation  he  makes  the  inference, 
"This  is  a  fourth-grade  pupil,"  with  the  accompanying  reserva- 
tion that  he  should  not  be  surprised  if  on  investigation  the 
pupil  might  turn  out  to  belong  to  the  third  grade.  He  now 
sets  to  work  to  prove  or  disprove  his  inference. 

As  the  trained  botanist  sees  at  a  glance  through  a  micro- 
scope certain  things  which  a  novice  would  never  discover,  and 
others  which  it  would  take  him  hours  to  find,  so  the  skilled 
teacher,  by  judicious  questioning  quickly  gains  a  knowledge  of 
the  conditions  of  the  case.  The  reconstructive  mental  material 
furnished  by  experience  enabled  him  to  exercise  prophetic 
vision.  As  on  the  lower  planes  the  kinoesthetic  image  forms 
the  "  mental  cue "  to  the  motor  act,  so  here  there  is  the 
anticipation  of  the  result,  an  idea  of  how  this  boy  would 
react  to  the  conditions  if  placed  in  a  fourth  grade.  And  thus 
under  ordinary  conditions  the  school  principal  can  make  the 
adjustment  without  danger  of  error. 

The  problem  of  classification  may,  however,  become  very 
complicated  in  actual  experience ;  e.g.,  the  pupil  may  be 
above  the  reading  standard  of  the  fourth  grade  and  below 
the  arithmetic  standard  of  the  third  grade  and  the  parent 
may  be  very  anxious  to  have  the  pupil  assigned  to  the 
highest  possible  grade.  In  such  cases  the  principal  often 
refrains  from  issuing  his  "fiat"  without  further  experimen- 
tation.    Pie  postpones  the  decision  and  puts  the  pupil  into  the 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science.  31 

crucible  of  actual  grade  experience,  lie  knows  that  a  pupil 
tested  in  a  higher  grade  and  then  consigned  to  a  lower  is 
likely  to  fail  from  discouragement  and  he  therefore  makes 
the  test  in  the  third  grade,  it  being  distinctly  understood  that 
the  arrangement  is  simply  tentative.  In  this  way  a  more 
definite  and  satisfactory  reaction  is  secured  and  usually  in  the 
course  of  a  day  or  two  the  matter  is  settled  beyond  a  shadow 
of  doubt.  Then,  and  not  till  then,  the  principal  completes 
the  judgment,   "This  is  a  fourth-grade  pupil." 

Now,  the  difference  between  the  static  and  dynamic  modes 
of  classification  is  not  a  temporal  one.  The  classification  may 
be  made  more  quickly  in  the  latter  case  than  in  the  former, 
for  the  principal  knows  exactly  how  to  proceed.  The  differ- 
ence is  one  of  function,  attitude,  insight.  The  claim  made 
in  this  thesis  is  that  the  dynamic  method  of  classification  is 
scientific  and  the  static  unscientific,  and,  further,  that  what- 
ever has  been  or  can  be  discovered  which  will  aid  the  principal 
in  making  such  dynamic  classification  may  properly  be  said  to 
be  included  in  the  science  of  education.  Such  assistance  may 
be  gained  from  a  judicious  study  of  many  subjects — ethics, 
sociology,  psycholog}-,  history  of  education,  school  organization, 
etc. 

There  are  different  stages  in  the  development  of  child  life. 
There  are  subjects  of  study,  ways  of  presenting  them,  and 
kinds  of  surroundings — physical,  social,  ethical,  aesthetic — 
which  at  these  respective  stages  are  especially  adapted  to  the 
highest  educational  advance  of  the  learner.  These  relations 
have  been  pretty  systematically  worked  out  in  detail  so  that 
now  there  is,  as  we  shall  see  later,  an  organized  body  of  scien- 
tific knowledge  on  the  various  lines  suggested  at  the  disposal 
of  anyone  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  refer  to  it.  This 
general  educational  theory  has  been  studied  in  its  application 
to  the  special  problem  of  classification.  It  has  been  brought 
to  educational  consciousness  that  the  proper  time  to  promote 


32  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

a  boy  may  not  be  when  the  whole  class  or  a  majority  of  the 
class  are  ready,  but  when  he  has  reached  the  promotion  point. 
It  has  been  realized,  further,  that  age,  initiative  power,  health 
and  other  elements  should  be  taken  into  consideration  and 
that  a  knowledge  requirement  by  itself  is  not  always  a  suffi- 
cient criterion  for  classification. 

It  must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  such  residual  knowl- 
edge concerning  classification  of  pupils  cannot  be  used  in  its 
primal  form.  Its  only  value  is  to  afford  insight  into  the  prob- 
lem, and  to  be  most  helpful  it  must  be  assimilated.  The 
school  principal  must  have  thought  it  out.  He  must  have 
experimented  sufficiently  to  have  made  the  facts  his  own, 
and  to  be  able  to  sympathize  with,  i.e.,  to  put  himself  in  the 
place  of,  the  pupil,  and  consider  the  situation  from  the  pupil's 
standpoint.  In  addition  to  such  theoretical  knowledge  he 
should  be  familiar  with  the  materials  which  are  at  his  dis- 
posal. The  number  of  grades  in  the  school,  the  maximum 
and  minimum  qualifications  of  the  pupils  in  respective  grades, 
the  nature  of  the  work  being  done,  the  characteristic  powers 
of  different  teachers — a  familiarity  with  these  and  many  other 
details  will  prove  of  value. 

We  have  thus  far  considered  the  school  principal  as  taking 
an  interest  in  this  case  because  it  presents  an  obstacle  in  his 
experience  requiring  reconstruction.  In  order  to  obtain  his 
ends  this  pupil  is  to  be  classified  and  he  solves  the  problem  as 
a  matter  of  economy  and  utility.  But  he  may  have  a  scientific 
interest  in  the  case — in  its  bearing  upon  educational  system, 
in  its  power  to  furnish  an  instrument  for  future  classification. 
This  phase  reveals  a  different  attitude  on  the  part  of  the 
observer. 

Scientific  treatment  originates  in  the  proof  process.  The 
problem  becomes  more  and  more  complex  and,  as  in  the 
foregoing  example,  we  start  in  to  prove,  or  disprove,  an 
inference  made.     The  process  of  reconstruction  may  become 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Science.  33 

so  extended,  may  require  so  much  development  and  elabor- 
ation, that  we  become  interested  in  the  development  of  the 
technique,  and,  for  the  time  being,  the  practical  phase  is 
submerged.  Instead  of  being  interested  in  proof  we  are 
now  interested  in  getting  a  technique  for  suggesting  and 
solving  problems.  The  mind  assumes  a  distinctly  experi- 
mental and  reflective  attitude,  like  that  of  the  physical 
scientist  in  a  laboratory  investigation.  We  proceed  to 
develop  and  to  test  hypotheses.  We  create  artificial  condi- 
tions for  experimentation.  We  exercise  the  greatest  possible 
care  in  observation,  interpretation,  elaboration  and  statement. 
Thus  we  arrive  at  law. 

I  hope  to  show  in  subsequent  chapters  that  it  is  possible  to 
formulate  laws  of  educational  science  in  this  way,  and  that 
a  large  body  of  such  results  have  been  reached  scientifically. 
My  contention  is,  however,  that  these  laws  are  of  especial 
value,  not  as  possessing  finality  in  themselves,  but  as  abstrac- 
tions made  for  purposes  of  control  of  the  educational  process. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE    DYNAMIC    CONCEPTION    OF    EDUCATION. 

The  definitions  and  systems  of  education  proposed  from 
time  to  time  have  been  reflections  of  the  philosophical  views 
held  implicitly  or  explicitly  by  those  who  have  been  instru- 
mental in  their  construction. 

1.  The  Information  Theory. — The  extreme,  dualistic  concep- 
tion which  posited  ultimate  reality  as  external  to  the  individual, 
whether  it  took  the  form  of  Plato's  Eidos  (which  was  super- 
sensuous  but  nevertheless  external),  or  that  of  the  measured, 
spatial  object  of  the  materialist,  issued  in  an  educational 
theory  that  considered  the  individual  a  receptacle  to  be  filled 
with  static  knowledge  concerning  external  types  or  objects, 
and  made  information  the  prime,  if  not  the  sole,  factor  in 
education. 

2.  The  Development  Theory. — At  the  other  pole  of  this 
dualistic  view  we  find  the  subjective,  idealistic  conception  that 
"  mind  makes  nature,"  from  which  was  developed  an  educa- 
tional theory  of  spontaneity  expressed  by  the  words  : 

"  There  is  an  inmost  center  in  us  all 
Where  truth  abides  in  fullness,     *     *     * 
*****         and  to  know 
Rather  consists  in  opening  out  a  way 
Whence  the  imprisoned  splendor  may  escape 
Than  in  effecting  entry  for  a  light 
Supposed  to  be  without." 

In  accordance  with  the  most  extreme  conception  of  this  theory, 
an  effort  was  made  to  have  the  child  spin  the  universe  out  of 
his  own  inner  consciousness. 

34 


The   Dynamic  Conception  of  Education.  35 

The  information  method  proved  inadequate  because  it  pre- 
sented to  the  mind  material  without  regard  to  its  suitability 
and  without  attention  to  its  assimilation.  The  development 
view  failed  because  it  furnished  no  proper  content  for  the  mind 
to  work  upon  and  spent  time  in 

"  Dipping  buckets  into  empty  wells 

And  growing  old  in  drawing  nothing  out." 

3.  The  Folloiu-Nature  Theory. — From  this  double  failure 
emerged  a  third  view  closely  resembling  the  development 
theory  but  reflecting  (though  imperfectly)  two  important 
advances  in  modern  thought,  viz. :  a  reaction  against  the 
static,  dualistic  philosophy  and  an  increased  appreciation  of 
the  results  of  natural  science  investigation.  This  third  view 
in  its  extreme  form  may  be  summarized  as  follows  :  The 
advocates  of  the  information  and  development  methods  have 
made  a  mistake  in  divorcing  mind  from  matter  ;  "  intuitions 
without  concepts  are  blind,  and  concepts  without  intuitions 
are  empty ; "  accordingly  both  the  physical  and  psychical 
phases  must  be  considered  in  education.  The  information 
theory  is  right  in  holding  that  there  are  important  facts  out- 
side the  child  which  must  be  learned.  The  development 
theory  is  right  in  holding  that  all  education  must  be  self- 
edueition.  Both  are  wrong  in  establishing  an  artificial  method 
which  has  interfered  with  the  process  of  natural  development. 
They  have  made  the  child  self-conscious — like  the  centiped 
that  got  along  well  enough  until  he  began  to  count  his  legs, 
when  he  became  bewildered  and  fell  into  the  ditch.  We  must 
follow  nature.  On  the  biological  and  psychical  sides  "  the 
genesis  of  knowledge  in  the  race  conforms  to  the  genesis  of 
knowledge  in  the  individual."  Do  not  interfere  with  the 
child's  development.  Let  him  discover  everything  for  himself 
and  abide  by  the  discipline  of  consequences.  If  he  puts  his 
finger  into  the  fire  and  is  burned  he  will  not  put  his  finger 
into  the  fire  the  next  time.     He  cannot  learn  to  swim  without 


36  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

going  into  the  water.  Let  him  alone  and  when  the  proper 
time  comes  he  will  go  in  of  his  own  accord  and  develop  his 
own  individual  method,  imitating  as  much  as  is  necessary. 
An  instructor  does  more  harm  than  good.  The  result  of 
instruction  in  swimming  is  to  render  the  child  artificial,  con- 
strained, mechanical,  self-conscious,  and  eventually  to  spoil 
what  would  otherwise  have  been  a  good  swimmer. 

Now,  this  is  a  very  insidious  argument  and  one  which  in  a 
more  or  less  modified  form  has  made  a  host  of  converts, 
including  many  eminent  men.  Its  fallacies  have  been  fre- 
quently exposed,  but  it  dies  hard  because  it  is  based  in  part 
upon  a  dynamic  conception  which  when  properly  understood 
and  applied  is  the  most  vitalizing  principle  of  all  activity. 

Let  us  consider  for  a  moment  the  origin  of  the  true  con- 
ception which  this  theory  has  only  in  part  understood. 
Perhaps  Hegel's  greatest  contribution  to  philosophy  was  that 
he  developed  the  view  that  "being"  and  "non-being"  are 
one  and  their  common  term  is  "  becoming."*  He  says 
(Hegel,  I.  385),  "The  infinite  expansion  of  nature,  and  abso- 
lute retraction  of  the  ego  upon  itself,  are  fundamentally 
identical,  yet.  both  being  equally  real,  spirit  is  higher  than 
nature.  For  though  in  nature  we  have  the  realization — the 
infinitely-diversified  mediation  of  the  absolute — yet  spirit,  as 
being  essentially  self-conscious,  when  it  draws  back  the 
universe  into  itself  as  it  does  in  knowledge,  at  once  includes 
in  itself  the  outward,  expanding  totality  of  this  manifold 
world,  and  at  the  same  time  overreaches  and  idealizes  it, 
taking  away  its  externality  to  itself  and  to  the  mind,  and 
reflecting  it  all  into  the  unity  of  thought." 

This  attitude,  reinforced  by  recent  developments  of  physical 
and  biological  science,  has  powerfully  affected  the  trend  of  all 
modern  thought.  Its  tendency  has  been  to  substitute  concrete 
relationships  for  absolute  rights,  reciprocity  for  independence, 
and  evolution  for  revolution.      In  its  best  form  it  has  striven 

•See  Hegd-Cavrd,  p.  163. 


The   Dynamic  Conception  of  Education.  37 

to  conserve  all  that  was  good  and  beautiful  ami  true  in  the 
past  and  to  enrich  the  inherited  material  by  transferring  and 
adapting  it  to  present  requirements  in  such  a  way  as  to  work 
for  the  general  enlargement  of  human  interests  and  privileges. 

The  great  defects  in  the  "follow-nature"  theory  of  education 
are  that  it  ignores  this  heritage  of  the  race  and  forgets  the 
true  aim  of  education  and  the  means  to  the  attainment  of 
that  end. 

4.  The  Dynamic  Conception. — The  conception  of  education 
advocated  in  the  following  pages  means  evolution,  but  evolu- 
tion hastened  and  directed  by  reason.  As  we  shall  see,  the 
purpose  of  education  is  to  socialize  the  child,  to  enable  him  to 
gain  power  to  help  himself  and  others.  In  order  to  do  this 
he  must  learn  to  reconstruct  his  experience  in  the  easiest  and 
best  way.  On  the  knowledge  side  instead  of  following  the 
slow,  natural  process  of  discovery  pursued  by  the  primitive 
savage  he  must  cross-section  the  advance  movement  and  in  a 
few  years  pass  over  a  course  to  a  position  which  it  has  taken 
thousands  of  years  and  numerous  stages  of  civilization  to 
reach.  It  is  neither  possible  nor  desirable  that  he  should 
know  all  that  has  been  or  can  be  learned.  There  must  be 
judicious  selection.  Nor  is  this  selected  knowledge  a  body  of 
fact  to  be  taken  on  as  a  dead  burden  by  the  learner.  It  is  a 
something  which  has  existed  in  the  consciousness  of  others 
and  must  be  translated  into  his  consciousness  as  power  for 
future  achievement.  Nor  is  it  always  to  be  learned  in  the 
order  in  which  it  was  discovered  by  the  race.  The  child 
should  not  be  permitted  to  follow  every  fickle  and  transitory 
interest  but  only  those  interests  which  he  would  possess  if  he 
were  fully  conscious  of  the  most  vital  needs  of  the  present 
situation.  It  is  in  this  abbreviating,  translating  process  that 
the  teacher  participates  as  "guide,  philosopher  and  friend" 
to  aid  in  the  proper  preparation  of  mind  and  in  the  proper 
selection  and  presentation  of  material.  Society  provides  both 
school  and  teacher,    in  order  that  the  individual  may  realize 


38  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

the  highest  purpose  of  education  in  the  most  rapid  and 
thorough-going  way. 

It  ma}r  not  be  out  of  place  to  remark  in  passing  that  the 
"  follow-nature  "  theory  is  often  urged  as  an  argument  against 
the  professional  training  of  teachers.  We  are  told  that  the 
only  way  to  learn  to  teach  is  by  teaching,  that  if  one  is  a  born 
teacher  he  will  succeed,  and  if  not  he  must  take  the  conse- 
quences. This  is  the  argument,  in  a  new  dress,  formerly 
urged  in  favor  of  the  quack-herb  doctor  as  against  the  trained 
physician.  Its  advocates  overlook  the  fact  that  the  theory 
pressed  to  its  ultimate  conclusion  entirely  does  away  with  the 
necessity  for  any  teacher. 

If  such  control,  abbreviation  of  labor  and  translation  of 
knowledge  as  we  have  referred  to,  be  entirely  unnecessary 
then  the  child  requires  neither  school  nor  teacher.  "Follow 
nature  "  means  either  that  civilization  has  left  us  nothing  that 
is  worth  learning  or  else  that  a  teacher  can  be  of  no  service  in 
facilitating  the  process  of  mastering  it.  Similarly,  those  who 
advocate  that  the  only  way  to  learn  to  teach  is  by  teaching 
must  mean  either  that  thus  far  nothing  of  value  has  been  dis- 
covered regarding  teaching,  or  that  what  has  been  discovered 
cannot  be  learned  in  any  other  way  than  by  rediscovering  it 
in  the  original  primitive  fashion.  Their  position  further  asserts 
that  beginners  have  the  right  to  practice  upon  children,  and 
that  it  is  the  duty  of  parents  and  public  to  allow  children  to 
be  made  the  suffering  "stepping-stones"  on  which  the  would- 
be  teacher  is  to  "  rise  to  higher  things." 

Much  has  been  said  and  written  concerning  the  injury  to 
children  resulting  from  child-study  experiments  and  from  the 
teaching  of  pupil-teachers  in  training-schools.  But  in  most 
schools  these  evils  have  now  been  reduced  to  a  minimum  or 
entirely  overcome.  Child  study  can  be  carried  on  most  effect- 
ively without  the  child  being  conscious  that  he  is  being  studied, 
and  a  pupil-teacher  may  prepare  a  lesson  so  thoroughly  and 
teach  it  so  well   that  the  results  are  quite  as  satisfactory  as 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Education.  39 

those  secured  by  the  regular  teacher.  On  the  other  hand,  one 
seldom  hears  a  word  of  protest  against  that  most  protracted, 
and  dangerous  kind  of  child  study  and  unscientific  experiment 
which  is  inflicted  upon  children  when  the  untrained  novice 
without  any  special  preparation  for  teaching — without  even 
the  appreciation  of  a  necessity  for  such  preparation — and  with 
no  critic  to  notice  errors  or  suggest  improvements,  plunges 
in  haphazard  and  blunders  along  year  after  year  getting 
(so-called)  "experience." 

The  problem  of  education  does  not  admit  of  so  easy  a  solu- 
tion as  to  enable  the  teacher  to  be  quite  sure  that  he  will  not 
make  shipwreck  if  he  simply  trusts  to  blind  enthusiasm  and 
instinctive  sympathy  without  taking  the  trouble  to  inquire 
what  port  he  sails  for  or  the  best  route  by  which  to  reach  his 
destination. 

To  return  to  the  subject  of  our  former  discussion,  if,  instead 
of  adopting  "information,"  "development,"  " follow-nature," 
or  any  other  of  the  many  educational  shibboleths  which  have 
been  proposed  from  time  to  time,  we  carefully  investigate  the 
subject  from  the  functional  standpoint  we  shall  see  that  each 
of  these  views  is  narrow  and  segmental. 

In  considering  the  aim  and  method  of  education  we  must 
take  a  wider  outlook.  True  education  is  both  instruction  and 
development.  It  is  natural  and  artificial.  It  concerns  the 
individual  in  his  totality — physical,  mental,  social,  spiritual, 
religious.  It  is  for  the  present  and  for  the  future,  for  mastery 
and  for  service,  for  the  individual  and  for  society.  It  involves 
the  self-activity,  the  self-realization  of  the  learner,  the  guarding 
and  controlling  influence  and  inspiration  of  parent  and  teacher, 
and  the  assistance  of  the  community  and  the  state.  It  is  not 
one  but  all  in  proper  equipoise.  These  characteristics  are  not 
isolated,  static,  unrelated  entities.  They  are  simply  different 
factors  in  education,  angles  from  which  the  process  of  the 
reconstruction  of  educational  experience  may  lie  viewed.     They 


40  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

all  enter  into  the  totality  of  a  harmonious  educational  system 
and  find  their  center  in  the  remaking  of  present  experience. 

In  the  laudable  desire  to  make  of  education  a  preparation 
for  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  adult  life  there  has  been 
a  tendency  to  shift  the  focus  of  attention  upon  the  future  to 
the  neglect  of  the  present,  and  to  forget  that  we  are  not  gifted 
with  such  prophetic  vision  as  to  be  able  to  forecast  with  any 
degree  of  certainty  the  conditions  under  which  the  child  is 
going  to  be  placed  in  adult  life,  and,  further,  that,  in  anj' 
event,  the  best  way  to  prepare  for  the  future  is  to  live  the 
present  life  in  the  best  way.  The  result  of  ignoring  this  fact 
has  been  to  rob  the  child  of  the  gratification  of  present  achieve- 
ment and  to  render  him  unnatural  and  unpractical.  The  focus 
of  the  universe  and  of  life  for  the  individual  is  the  present 
situation.  What  is  done  in  education  must  be  done  at  this 
point  in  the  reconstruction  of  special  experience  under  special 
conditions  of  adaptation.  The  starting  point  and  the  instru- 
ments are  found  here,  and  the  criterion  of  value  of  any  educa- 
tional instrument  is  its  adequacy  in  the  facilitation  of  this 
present  reconstruction.  In  other  words,  education  is  "  the  life 
to  be  lived." 

For  purposes  of  clearness  I  shall  now  state  my  fundamental 
position  dogmatically  and  endeavor  to  substantiate  it  at  a 
later  stage. 

If  we  take  the  case  of  any  individual  learner  and  define  the 
situation  "the  this,  the  here,  the  now  "  to  the  very  last  inch, 
e.g.,  boy,  teacher,  schoolroom  conditions,  time  of  day,  etc.,  then 
from  the  very  nature  of  things  the  following  statements  will 
hold  true  in  every  case  without  exception : 

1.  Individual  Characteristics. — This  learner  possesses  certain 
tendencies,  habits,  capacities,  adaptations,  interests,  which  are 
different  from  those  of  any  other  child  and  different  from  those 
which  he  himself  has  previously  had  or  will  subsequently  possess. 

2.  Aim. — There  are  certain  educational  aims  which  for  him 
are  preferable  to  any  others ;  e.g.,  development  of  character, 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Education.  41 

including  knowledge  and  control,  is  a  superior  aim  to  that  of 
the  accumulation  of  wealth  for  the  sole  purpose  of  sensuous 
gratification. 

3.  Means. — There  are  available  certain  educational  means 
which,  both  as  to  content  and  form,  are  for  his  particular 
conditions  best  fitted  for  the  attainment  of  this  highest  ideal. 

4.  Material — (a)  Subject-Matter  of  Study. — There  is  a 
certain  kind  of  stimulus  to  the  learning  activity  which  is 
superior  to  any  other  content  which  could  be  selected.  As 
shown  in  Chapter  III  this  stimulus  presents  a  problem  for 
solution,  an  obstacle  to  the  habitual  flow,  a  something  which 
renders  reconstructive  thought  necessary.  The  subject-matter 
is  not  to  be  chosen  at  random.  There  are  certain  forms  of 
study  which  would  be  injurious  to  the  child  and  subversive  of 
the  true  aim  of  education — e.g.,  the  most  successful  methods 
of  picking  pockets  ;  there  are  others  which  would  be  com- 
paratively valueless — e.g.,  the  names  of  certain  unimportant 
islands  in  a  distant  ocean  ;  there  are  still  others  which  might 
be  very  valuable  to  another  child,  but  not  to  this  child,  and 
so  on.  In  other  words,  there  is  some  particular  form  of  recon- 
struction, be  it  a  problem  in  algebra,  the  consideration  of  a 
literary  selection,  the  making  of  a  thermometer  or  some  other 
form  of  definite  activity,  which  for  this  child  here  and  now 
is  preferable  to  any  other  which  could  be  presented. 

(b)  Conditions  of  Study. — The  surroundings  of  the  learner, 
his  companions,  the  hygienic  conditions,  schoolroom  furnish- 
ings, etc.,  influence  his  development  in  large  measure;  e.g., 
a  temperature  of  sixty-five  degrees  may  be  preferable  to 
one  of  sixty  degrees,  a  male  teacher  may  be  preferable  to  a 
female  teacher,  or  vice  versa.  There  are  forms  of  such  external 
conditions  under  which  the  child  may  be  placed  which  for  this 
particular  child  at  this  period  are  superior  to  any  others,  and 
unless  the  best  available  surroundings  are  secured  his  educa- 
tion is  interfered  with. 


42  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

o.  Methods. — There  are  certain  methods  of  teaching  and 
learning  which  for  this  child  are  preferable  to  any  other. 
There  is  a  best  form  of  presenting  the  material  as  regards 
quality,  quantity  and  sequence,  and  a  best  form  of  mind 
reaction  upon  this  material  when  presented ;  e.g.,  mathe- 
matics may  be  the  best  study  for  this  hour,  but  manual 
training  may  be  preferable  to  mathematics  for  the  next  hour. 
At  some  future  time  percentage  may  be  the  best  subject,  but 
to-day  the  stage  of  advancement  may  be  such  that  addition  of 
fractions  should  occupy  the  attention.  It  may  be  better  at 
some  other  time  simply  to  tell  the  child  the  fact  to  be  learned 
or  to  let  him  discover  it  without  any  external  aid.  At  this 
time,  however,  the  best  thing  to  do  may  be  to  suggest  and 
develop  through  sequential  presentation  of  material,  and 
through  a  form  of  questioning  which  will  direct  the  focus  of 
attention  upon  greatest  difficulties  in  such  a  way  as  to  lead  to 
rapid  solution.  In  this  lesson  it  may  be  best  to  emphasize 
certain  points  which  in  themselves  are  comparatively  unim- 
portant but  which  prepare  the  mind  to  react  upon  material 
to  be  presented  in  the  future.  On  another  occasion  it  may 
be  better  to  emphasize  the  main  fact  to  the  exclusion  of  all 
others.  Again,  the  physical  and  mental  condition  of  the  pupil 
may  be  such  that  sleep  is  preferable  to  any  kind  of  activity. 

The  criterion  of  excellence  of  subject-matter,  external  aid 
or  method,  is  always  its  functional  aptitude  in  furnishing 
that  kind  of  problem  best  fitted  to  the  present  powers  of  the 
child  and  to  the  true  aim  of  education. 

By  the  term  available  (p.  41)  I  mean  within  the  possibilities 
of  the  case ;  e.g.,  it  may  be  true  that  at  this  stage  in  the  boy's 
career  expensive  travel  would  be  more  valuable  than  school 
study,  but  if  the  travel-scheme  is  entirely  impracticable  it 
need  not  enter  into  our  consideration.  The  hest  available 
conditions  for  a  boy  in  a  class  of  fifty  pupils  are  very  different 
from  those  for  the  same  pupil  in  a  class  of  thirty.  The 
teacher  who  would  avoid  discouragement  does  well  to  remem- 


The  Dynamic  Conception  of  Education.  43 

ber  that  there  can  never  be  responsibility  unless  there  is 
corresponding  power;  in  other  words,  "if  we  ought  we  can." 

As  has  been  pointed  out  the  individual  never  remains  the 
same  for  any  appreciable  period  of  time.  Jn  the  forward 
movement  of  experience  the  shifting  of  the  focus  of  the 
present  reveals  constant  change,  constant  growth.  There  is 
a  continual  breaking  down  of  the  old  and  a  building  up  of 
the  new  under  conditions  which  render  education  possible. 
The  very  essence  of  education  is  to  see  that  at  every  step  of 
the  process  this  reconstruction  is  effected  in  the  best  possible 
way  for  the  individual  and  for  society.  The  form  and  value 
of  the  reconstruction  at  every  point  is  conditioned  upon  the 
aim  selected  and  the  means  adopted  for  its  attainment. 

Educational  science  arose  from  an  effort  to  gain  control  of 
the  educational  process,  to  secure  instruments  of  insight  which 
would  enable  the  educator  to  make  the  wisest  selection  of  aims 
and  means.  I  shall  endeavor  to  establish  not  only  that  the 
construction  of  such  a  science  is  possible,  but  also  that  it  has 
been  in  a  measure  realized,  that  there  exists  a  body  of  tested 
and  systematized  knowledge  which  properly  falls  under  the 
category  of  educational  science,  and  which  when  properly 
apprehended  and  applied  is  of  genuine  assistance  to  the 
teacher. 

It  is  not  claimed  that  there  have  been,  or  can  be,  discovered 
educational  facts  or  laws  which  when  memorized  will  enable 
the  teacher  to  posit  with  certainty  the  best  method  of  pro- 
cedure in  each  particular  case.  The  contention  is  that  by 
following  a  certain  coxirse  of  preparatory  investigation  the 
teacher  will  gain  such  insight  as  will  enable  him  to  under- 
stand the  particular  situation  in  its  complex  bearings — its 
needs  and  the  proper  mode  of  response — in  a  way  that  would 
have  been  entirely  impossible  without  such  preliminary 
training. 

I  shall  next  proceed  to  a  closer  analysis  of  the  aims  and 
means  of  education. 


CHAPTER  V. 

EDUCATIONAL    AIMS    AND    MKANS. 

No  clearly-defined  differentiation  can  be  made  respecting 
the  true  aims  of  education  and  the  means  to  their  attainment, 
and  any  analysis  must,  in  the  nature  of  the  case,  be  abstract, 
static  and  artificial.  However,  for  purposes  of  clearness  in 
our  discussion,   the   following   may   be  of   service  : 

Education  : 

T     T       ,  .  ( Knowledge"!    attitude,  control,  culture, 

I.  Its  Aims:  «_..     .  ..        I         , 

^Discipline  J        character. 

II.  Its  Means  : 

A.  Material  or  Instruments  : 

1.  The  self-active  individual  to  be  educated. 

2.  The  surroundings  of  the  individual  : 

(a)  The  subject-matter  of  study,  as  literature, 
art,  science. 

(6)  The  social  factor,  as  parent,  teacher,  com- 
panions. 

(c)  Direct  stimulus  to    the  learning  activity  ; 

e.g. — in  the  study  of  a  mountain  in 
geography — an  actual  mountain  or  the 
artificial  material,  sand  molding-board, 
etc.,  by  means  of  which  the  definition 
of  a  mountain  may  be  illustrated. 

(d)  Physical    conditions  which    render    educa- 

tion   possible ;    e.g.,    food,    air,    etc. 


Educational  Aims  and  Means.  45 

B.   Methods  or  Form  : 

1.  The  .selection  and  arrangement  of  material,  i.e., 

the  proper  presentation  of  problems. 

2.  The  securing  of  proper  conditions  for  study. 

3.  The   proper  direction  of    the    learner's    activity 

upon    the    material    presented. 

We  have  seen  that  the  function  of  educational  science  is  to 
furnish  an  insight  regarding  the  highest  educational  aims  and 
the  most  effective  means  to  their  attainment.  Let  us  now 
proceed  to  a  consideration  of  the  basis  upon  which  these  aims 
and  means  are  formulated. 

I.  Educational  Aims.— The  school  is  a  social  institution 
which  owes  its  origin  and  maintenance  to  the  belief  that  it  is 
for  the  good  of  the  state  and  of  the  individual  that  the  child 
should  be  educated.  As  Doctor  Dewey  says,  "The  purpose 
of  education  is  to  socialize  the  child."  The  curriculum,  the 
methods  of  study,  the  entire  school  machinery,  will,  therefore, 
be  determined  by  the  views  held  regarding  the  most  perfect 
type  of  socialized  individual. 

Any  narrow  static  view  which  makes  the  summum  bonum 
consist  in  formal  discipline,  unassimilated  information,  or 
superficial    polish,    falls    far    short    of    the    true    ideal. 

What  the  child  needs  in  order  to  make  him  a  valuable 
factor  in  present  and  future  social  life  is  a  complete  mastery 
of  himself,  a  power  and  willingness  always  to  choose  the  par- 
ticular line  of  conduct  that  shall  most  highly  develop  his  own 
personality  and  yet  be  most  completely  compatible  with  the 
best  interests  of  others.  In  other  words,  what  he  needs  is 
character. 

At  the  outset  he  is  comparatively  helpless  and  at  the  mercy 
of  his  surroundings.  His  activities  are  instinctive  or  impulsive. 
His  aims  are  of  the  vaguest  sort,  and  his  selections  of  a  reflex 
type,  resembling  those  of  the  plant  and  lower  animal  in  their 
adaptations  for  survival.     He  is  absorbed  in  the  present. 


46  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

He  soon  begins,  however,  to  develop  self-consciousness.  He 
sets  up  ends  or  aims  and  goes  about  realizing  them.  He 
gains  control  of  his  own  organism.  He  forms  habits  which 
leave  him  free  for  more  deliberate  action  and  for  the  forma- 
tion of  more  remote  and  comprehensive  ends.  He  advances 
from  physical  and  prudential  to  moral  control.  He  identifies 
himself  with  those  about  him,  cultivates  feelings  of  love  and 
sympathy  and  forms  ideas  of  his  rights  and  obligations  as  a 
member  of  society.  He  reflects  on  his  duties  to  family,  fellow- 
men,  country  and  God.  With  this  upward  development  of 
freedom,  these  more  comprehensive  ends  become  laws.  These 
laws,  though  sometimes  apparently  conflicting,  may  be  general- 
ized into  a  permanent  principle  of  conformity  to  highest  law. 
Finally,  this  principle  of  conformity  to  highest  law  forms  a 
criterion  for  all  impulses  and  desires,  and  the  individual 
"  finds  his  moral  good  in  conformity  to  the  ideal  standard 
set  up  by  the  reason  and  willed  by  the  reason "  (Watson's 
Hedonistic  Theories,  p.  136).  Thus  the  individual  attains 
character. 

Character  in  this  sense  means  culture,  but  a  culture  which 
combines  both  knowledge  and  discipline.  If  knowledge  is 
ignored  the  experience  lacks  in  adequate  content  for  further 
adaptation.  If  discipline  receives  no  attention  the  informa- 
tion is  not  translated  into  a  system  but  remains  unrelated 
and  proves  a  dead  weight  in  future  advance. 

True  knowledge  means  increase  of  power  of  interpretation. 
As  a  result  of  the  assimilation  of  intellectual  and  moral  food 
from  the  social  storehouse  the  individual  sees  everything  in  a 
new  light.  .  All  activity  takes  on  a  fuller  and  wider  meaning. 
True  discipline,  on  the  other  hand,  resulting  from  scientific, 
orderly,  systematic  procedure,  gives  to  the  content  a  proper 
form  of  adaptation  in  relation  to  social  requirement.  Culture 
or  character,  then,  rightly  understood  is  the  whole  individual 
thus    socialized    whose  productive   powers  have  been  so  con- 


Educational  Aims  and  Means.  47 

trolled  and  enriched  that  his  activity  now  possesses  explicit 
social  value. 

Any  narrow  aim  in  educational  procedure  is  apt  to  develop 
into  a  passive,  individual,  caste  selfishness.  Scholarly  attain- 
ment, skill,  refinement  of  manner,  are  then  sought,  not  for 
the  true  end  of  education  but  for  purposes  of  self-aggrandize- 
ment and  exclusive  privilege.  The  dynamic  view,  on  the 
contrary,  is  based  upon  a  principle  of  cooperation.  It  holds 
that  without  the  advantages  of  contact,  both  with  society  and 
with  its  resources,  there  can  be  no  education  worthy  of  the 
name.  The  individual  who  is  truly  cultured  rises  into  social 
consciousness,  realizes  that  he  is  a  member  of  society,  embody- 
ing in  himself  the  attainments  of  civilization,  and  that  he  is 
a  social  instrument  in  the  perpetuation  and  improvement  of 
these  attainments.  He  brings  to  society  certain  individual 
capacities.  Society  furnishes  aims  and  means  for  the  trans- 
formation of  these  activities  so  as  to  give  them  social  value. 

This  does  not  imply  that  there  is  a  something  called  society 
which  exists  apart  from  the  individuals  composing  it,  nor 
that  the  individual  loses  his  identity  and  becomes  swallowed 
up  in  society.  It  simply  means  that  he  becomes  functionally 
an  organic  element  in  the  larger  diversified  whole  which  reacts 
again  upon  his  individual  experience,  rendering  individual 
unity  richer  and  more  complete. 

An  individual  of  good  character,  then,  possesses  good 
judgment — a  keen  sense  of  discriminative  insight  which  sees 
things  in  proper  perspective  and  proportion.  He  is  conscious 
of  the  respective  worths  of  elements  and  is  able  to  select  the 
important  and  abiding  factors.  He  is  more,  however,  than  a 
cold  logic  engine  ;  he  possesses  a  sensitiveness  which  "feels  a 
stain  as  a  wound,"  an  emotional  delicacy  or  responsiveness  to 
certain  elements  of  worth  which  cannot  be  mathematically 
measured.  Finally,  he  possesses  force  of  character.  He  is 
able  to  arrest  the  onward  flow,  to  examine  the  situation,   to 


48  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

decide  in  conformity  with  his  convictions  and  aims,  and,  when 
obstacles  or  temptations  arise,  to  persist  in  the  execution  of 
his  choice. 

The  Ethical  Factor. — In  practical  experience  the  educator 
is  always  met  with  a  concrete  situation  and  the  question  is 
what  ought  to  be  done  next.  This  question  cannot  be  properly 
answered  without  careful  reflection,  nor  can  it  be  disposed  of 
by  dogmatic  rule.  If,  as  has  been  said,  education  "is  the  life 
to  be  lived,"  the  most  vital  of  all  questions  is  what  kind 
of  life  should  be  lived,  what  is  the  ideal  type  of  life.  The 
educator  must  be  able  to  go  farther  than  a  mechanical  appli- 
cation of  a  fixed  ethical  standard.  He  must  have  the  insight 
to  cross-section  the  present  experience  and  to  investigate 
this  situation  and  determine  what  under  these  conditions 
ought  to  be  done.  Such  insight  can  be  gained  only  by  a 
careful  and  extended  examination  of  the  educational  problem 
in  its  religious,  moral  and  sociological  relations.  A  profes- 
sional training  course  for  teachers  should  afford  opportunity 
for  such  examination  and  for  access  to  the  best  literature  on 
the  subject.* 

II.  Educational  Means.— When  we  proceed  further,  and  ask 
to  what  extent  and  in  what  ways  the  educational  process  is 
to  be  facilitated  through  an  insight  furnished  by  educational 
science  regarding  the  means  of  attaining  these  ends,  we  are 
again  faced   with  a  complicated  problem. 

A.  Materials. — As  we  investigate  the  various  details  sug- 
gested in  our  table  we  find  that  in  a  certain  sense  the 
materials  or  instruments  to  be  used  are  furnished  ready  to 
hand  by  forces  over  which  the  educator  can  exert  no  direct 
control. 

"See  Aristotle's  Nichomachean  Ethics,  Peters. 
Christianity  and  Idealism,  Watson. 
The  Study  <>/  Ethics,  Dewey. 
Prolegomena  to  Ethics,  Green. 
Plato's  Theaetetus,  Dyde. 
Eroebel's  Edncational  Laws,  Hughes. 
Herbart  and  the  Herbartians,  DeGarmo. 


Educational  Aims  and  Means.  49 


The  individual  learner  is  born  into  the  world  with  certain 
physical,  intellectual  and  moral  potentialities,  with  instinctive 
impulses,  aptitudes,  tendencies,  which  will  always  condition 
his  educational  advance.  Nor  are  his  native  surroundings 
more  subservient  or  less  important.  His  social  relations  are 
in  great  measure  unchangeable.  The  wealth  of  his  inheritance, 
in  the  realms  of  literature,  art  and  science  cannot  be  augmented 
by  any  direct  educational  fiat,  but  slowly  increases  as  a  result 
of  the  perseverance  and  sagacity  of  the  race.  His  physical 
environment,  as  regards  stimulus  to  the  learning  activity,  and 
the  conditions  under  which  such  stimulus  is  received,  appears 
to  be  beyond  the  pale  of  educational  influence. 

And  yet  in  regard  to  each  of  these  details  educational 
science  has  indirectly  an  important  work  to  perform.  It 
emphasizes  the  advantages  to  be  gained  by  a  proper  start  in 
education  ;  e.y.,  it  finds  on  the  negative  side  that  the  child 
born  with  weak  physical  or  mental  powers,  in  an  uncivilized 
community,  under  conditions  of  extreme  poverty,  is  by  each 
of  these  circumstances  seriously  handicapped  in  the  educational 
race.  It  endeavors  to  determine  the  ideal  types  of  individual 
and  of  surroundings  best  fitted  for  the  attainment  of  the  most 
satisfactory  results  in  the  educational  process  and  is,  therefore, 
deeply  interested  in  the  investigation  of  ways  and  means  for 
the  proper  production  of  such  types. 

The  educational  science  of  the  future  will,  no  doubt,  pay 
much  greater  attention  than  is  at  present  paid  to  the  consider- 
ation of  prenatal  problems  and  to  such  adjustment  of  wealth 
conditions  as  shall  render  it  possible  to  give  to  every  child 
a  liberal  education.  Such  investigation  is  biological,  socio- 
logical and  political  in  character,  the  psychology  involved 
in  it  being  rather  sociological  than  individual.  When  treated 
from  the  educational  standpoint  the  results  of  such  investiga- 
tion may  fairly  be  included  under  the  head  of  educational 
science,  and  should  form  a  part  of  every  teacher's  training 
course. 


50  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

B.  Methods. — Let  us  now  proceed  to  a  consideration  of  the 
methods  by  which  these  materials  can  be  best  utilized  in 
education  in  order  to  attain  the  highest  aims  in  the  most 
rapid  and  thorough-going  manner.  This,  after  all.  is  the 
practical  problem  of  education — the  one  with  which  the 
teacher  has  primarily  to  do,  for  usually  the  learner  and  his 
surroundings  are  existing  conditions  and  the  teacher  has  to 
make  the  best  of  them. 

I  shall  endeavor  to  establish  that  in  this  most  important 
and  direct  phase  of  the  teacher's  work  the  greatest  aid  is 
furnished  by  a  study  of  psychology  and  the  cognate  sciences 
of  biology,  neurology  and  physiology,  and  by  a  study  of  the 
history  of  education. 

1.  The  Psychological  Factor. — As  a  preliminary  step  it  may 
be  wise  to  clear  the  ground  by  a  brief  consideration  of  certain 
misconceptions  which  have  tended  to  create  a  reaction  against 
psychology  as  an  aid  in  the  preparation  of  teachers. 

1st.  It  is  sometimes  urged  that  there  are  few,  if  any, 
psychological  facts  upon  which  psychologists  are  themselves 
agreed  and  that,  therefore,  no  assistance  can  be  derived  from 
psychology. 

Now,  this  objection  arises  from  a  misapprehension  of  the 
actual  conditions.  It  is  true  that  since  the  opening  of  the 
first  experimental  laboratory  in  psychology  by  Professor 
Wundt  at  Leipsic,  in  1878,  very  great  changes  have  taken 
place  in  methods  of  conducting  psychological  study  and  great 
advances  have  been  made  along  certain  lines  of  psychological 
investigation. 

With  this  rapid  development  new  discoveries  and  contro- 
verted opinions  have  attracted  public  attention  to  such  an 
extent  that  established  facts  have  been  in  a  sense  forgotten. 
An  investigation  will  show  that  there  is  a  large  body  of 
psychological  knowledge  upon  which  all  are  in  substantial 
agreement  and    much   of   this   knowledge    is   of   the   greatest 


Educational  Aims  and  Means.  51 

value  in  education;  e.y.,  the  principle  that  "concentration 
of  attention  is  an  aid  to  memory "  is  one  which  has  been 
universally  admitted  and  practically  applied  from  the  earliest 
times.  The  modern  psychological  movement  has  verified  the 
statement  by  scientific  experiment,  has  given  us  a  better 
insight  into  the  true  meaning  of  concentration,  attention,  and 
memory,  and  has  thus  rendered  the  principle  a  more  valuable 
educational  instrument  than  formerly.  Thousands  of  similar 
examples  might  be  quoted  where  there  has  never  been  dis- 
agreement regarding  the  fundamental  facts. 

When  we  examine  the  field  of  controverted  theory  we  find 
that  psychological  science  is  building  upon  sure  foundations 
and,  further,  that  those  factors  which  in  their  nature  would 
be  of  most  value  to  education  are  those  concerning  which 
there  is  little  or  no  difference  of  opinion. 

The  example  usually  quoted  in  substantiation  of  the  objec- 
tion is  that  of  the  many  different-color  theories  held  by 
Wundt,  Hering,  Young,  Helmholtz,  etc.  It  is  pointed  out 
that  leading  psychologists  devote  much  space  to  the  views  of 
the  rival  claimants,  and  that  almost  every  psychologist  has  a 
theory  of  his  own.* 

Now,  the  "  color  theories "  referred  to  as  controversial  are 
attempts,  which  thus  far  have  proved  only  partially  successful, 
to  conceive  a  process  in  the  retina  which  could  be  correlated 
with  the  facts  of  consciousness.  In  other  words,  each  color 
theory  proposes  an  answer  to  the  question,  "  What  chemical  or 
mechanical  processes  take  place  in  the  eye — more  specifically 
in  the  retina — when  I  see,  or  have  sensations  of,  light  and 
color1?"  Obviously  the  correct  reply  to  this  question  must  be 
in  harmony  with  the  facts  of  color  sensation — e.g.,  the  pheno- 
mena of  color  mixture,  color  contrast,  after  images,  and  color 
blindness. 

There  is  still  considerahle  difference  of  opinion  as  to  what 
are  the  actual  facts,  but  the  points  in  dispute  are  being  con- 

*See  Outline*  of  Psychology,  Ktilpe,  p.  136. 


52  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

stantly  narrowed  down  through  scientific  research,  and  as  a 
result  some  color  theories  have  been  entirely  discredited  and 
others  greatly  modified.  While  the  discovery  of  a  theory  of 
visual  sensations  which  would  explain  all  the  phenomena  upon 
a  psycho-physical  basis  would  be  of  great  interest  to  the  educa- 
tor, and  might  ultimately  prove  of  much  value,  it  is  rather 
with  the  facts  regarding  color  phenomena  that  education  is 
most  deeply  concerned,  and  more  particularly  with  that  large 
body  of  facts  which  are  now  universally  agreed  upon. 

For  example,  as  regards  color  blindness  of  pupils  the  advan- 
tages accruing  froru  the  possession  of  psychological  knowledge 
by  the  teacher  would  be  the  following : 

(a)  Such  knowledge  would  aid  in  determining  whether  color 
blindness  is  sufficiently  important  to  enter  into  the  problem  of 
control  of  the  learning  process.  There  are  conceivable  cases 
— for  instance,  that  of  studying  a  colored  map  in  geography — 
where  the  color-blind  pupil  might  be  unable  to  understand 
presented  material  and  would  thus  be  placed  at  a  disadvantage. 
After  an  investigation  of  such  cases  the  question  would  be,  Is 
the  abnormality  of  sufficient  importance  and  frequency  and  is 
its  remedy  sufficiently  practicable  to  render  it  wise  to  spend 
time  in  considering  particular  cases'? 

(b)  It  would  aid  in  determining  what  are  the  phenomena  of 
the  abnormal  condition  and  how  the  defect  may  be  discovered. 
Here  such  facts  as  that  color-blind  children  are  usually  very 
sensitive  in  regard  to  the  defect,  that  they  are  likely  to  make 
certain  kinds  of  color  errors,  and  that  the  sorting  of  yarns  is 
probably  the  most  satisfactory  test  of  color-blindness,  would 
be  aids  to  the  location  of  the  difficulty. 

(c)  It  would  aid,  by  furnishing  answers  to  such  questions  as 
the  following,  in  determining  by  what  means  the  abnormal 
conditions  could  be  overcome  :  Is  there  any  mechanical  device 
which  if  adopted  would  overcome  the  difficulty  as  spectacles 


Educational  Aims  and  Means.  53 

do  in  cases  of  myopia  1  *  Is  there  any  corrective  form  of 
muscular  exercise?  Is  there  another  available  avenue  of 
approach,  by  means  of  adaptation  of  present  partial-color 
sensations  or  through  visual  or  auditory  channels  or  verbal 
explanation  ? 

Now,  there  is  scarcely  any  difference  of  opinion  regarding 
the  results  of  investigation  along  any  of  these  three  lines  of 
inquiry. 

2nd.  Another  popular  conception  which  has  tended  to 
prevent  psychology  from  being  used  as  an  aid  in  teaching 
finds  expression  in  the  opinion  that  there  is  no  relation 
between  psychology  and  education. 

(a)  This  objection  may  arise  from  an  incorrect  view  of  the 
scope  of  psychology,  an  objection  which  vanishes  when  we 
consider  what  psychology  really  is. 

A  recent  writer  of  high  authority  says  (Stout,  Manual  of 
Psychology,  p.  12),  "Since  the  whole  world,  as  it  exists  for  an 
individual  consciousness,  whether  from  a  practical,  theoretical, 
or  aesthetic  point  of  view,  has  come  so  to  exist  through  prior 
mental  process,  it  may  be  said  that  there  is  no  objective  fact 
which  is  not  capable  of  being  utilized  by  the  psychologist. 
From  this  point  of  view  we  may  say,  with  Dr.  Ward,  that 
'  the  whole  choir  of  heaven  and  furniture  of  earth '  so  far  as 
they  are  known  are  data  for  psychology  (article  '  Psychology,' 
Encyclopedia  Britannica,  9th  ed.,  Vol.  XX,  p.  38).  So,  too, 
are  all  works  of  imagination ;  e.g.,  the  Iliad,  or  Hamlet,  or 
Grimm's  Fairy  Tales;  and  all  rules  of  conduct;  e.g.,  Roman 
law,  the  Brahman  ritual,  the  four  books  of  Confucius  and 
Mencius.  We  must,  however,  carefully  note  that  mere 
examination  of  mental  products  is  valueless  for  psychology, 
except  in  so  far  as  it  helps  us  to  trace  mental  process." 

Now,  the  ability  to  "  trace  mental  process "  is  a  necessity 
for  the  proper  selection  and  presentation  of  material  and  the 

*See  article  by  Professor  Kirschman,  University  of  Toronto  Studies,  Psychological 
Series  No.  1. 


54  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

proper  direction  of  the  learner's  activity,  and,  therefore,  if 
Professor  Stout's  view  be  correct,  psychological  study  is  neces- 
sary for  the  teacher  •  e.g.,  regarding  foreign-language  teaching 
Professor  Findlay  says  {Report  of  Educational  Subjects,  London, 
England,  '98,  Vol.  II,  p.  353),  "  If  it  were  possible  for  teachers 
of  foreign  languages  to  come  to  some  agreement  as  to  the 
essential  nature  of  a  native  language,  of  a  second  language, 
and  of  the  processes  by  which  these  grow  in  the  mind,  we 
should  not  be  far  from  an  agreement  as  to  their  place  in  the 
curriculum,  and  as  to  methods  for  teaching  them." 

I  hope  to  show  somewhat  definitely  in  the  next  chapter  how 
in  such  selection  and  presentation  of  material  psychology  is  of 
genuine  assistance  to  the  educator. 

(b)  Again,  in  contrast  with  this  too  narrow  view  of  the  scope 
of  psychology  the  objection  may  arise  from  the  other  pole  and 
may  be  due  to  a  reaction  against  exaggerated  claims  for  psy- 
chology in  education,  for  with  some  "educational  science"  and 
"psychology"  are  synonymous  terms. 

It  is  important  to  remember  that  psychology  in  this  con- 
nection has  its  limitations  as  well  as  its  possibilities.  (1)  A 
training  in  psychology  as  an  aid  to  the  teacher  can  never  take 
the  place  of  scholarship,  aptitude  or  practical  experience. 
While  conceding  this  point  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that 
psychological  study  per  se  possesses  a  culture  value  not  to  be 
despised,  and  many  teachers  have  also  found  that  through  its 
study — especially  in  the  branch  of  child  study — they  have 
been  awakened  to  an  interest  in,  and  a  sympathy  with, 
children  which  they  would  not  otherwise  have  possessed. 
Further,  the  value  of  experience  in  teaching  is  greatly 
enhanced  by  the  power  to  appreciate  the  salient  points  of 
such  experience — a  power  which  is  greatly  increased  by  psy- 
chological study.  (2)  Psychology  does  not  furnish  fixed  and 
inexorable  laws  which  may  be  applied  to  all  schoolroom  cases. 
It    furnishes    instruments  of  insight    which    must    be  ration- 


Kilucational  Aims  and  Means.  55 

ally  adapted  to  the  needs  of  each  new  situation.  (3)  All 
of  psychological  science  is  not  of  direct  educational  value 
Much  of  what  is  properly  included  in  a  university  course  in 
psychology  is  scarcely  of  more  value  fco  the  teacher  than  to  the 
mathematician  or  to  the  civil  engineer.  (4)  P^ducation  is  not 
a  suhdepartment  of  psychology.  To  he  of  most  service  in 
education  the  psychological  facts  must  he  considered  from 
the  educational  standpoint.  While  education  owes  much  to 
psychology,  some  of  the  most  fruitful  fields  of  psychological 
research  owe  their  discovery  to  suggestions  originating  in 
educational  investigation.  Thus  education  and  psychology 
reinforce  each  other.  (5)  Psychology,  as  we  have  seen,  does 
not  cover  the  whole  ground  of  the  aims  and  means  of  educa- 
tion. It  does  not  tell  why  we  study,  except  in  a  selecti\c 
sense,  or  what  to  study,  hut  it  aids  us  materially  in  determining 
how  to  study. 

2.  The  Historical  Factor. — A  study  of  the  history  of  civi- 
lization, and  more  particularly  of  that  phase  termed  "the 
history  of  education,"  is  of  the  greatest  assistance  in  the 
solution  of  educational  problems  and  thus  furnishes  valuable 
contribution  to  educational  science.  This  involves  not  only  a 
study  of  educational  aims  and  means  adopted  in  the  past,  and 
of  the  successes  and  failures  which  have  attended  certain 
lines  of  action,  but  also  an  investigation  of  what  is  now  being 
done,  of  the  best  systems  of  education,  courses  of  study,  text- 
books, and  methods  of  school  organization,  management  and 
teaching,  at  present  obtaining  in  various  countries  of  the 
world.  Such  empirical  investigation  serves  to  guard  against 
error,  to  suggest  lines  of  improvement  and  to  act  as  a  balance- 
wheel  to  the  abstract  and  ofttimes  impracticable  theories 
elaborated  from  the  philosophical  side.  Thus  by  a  minimum 
of  effort  we  may  avail  ourselves  of  the  results  of  the  costly 
experimentation  of  many  generations. 

The  teacher  in  training  finds  in  past  failures,  such  as  that  of 
the  monitorial-system  experiment,  in  the  wise  counsels  of  such 


56  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

educators  as  Comenius,  in  the  examples  of  the  vigorous  person- 
ality of  such  leaders  as  Arnold,  and  of  the  self-sacrifice  of  such 
philanthropists  as  Pestalozzi,  a  safeguard  against  error,  a  guide 
to  sound  method  and  a  stimulus  to  future  endeavor.  Further, 
a  comparative  study  of  educational  systems,  past  and  present, 
reveals  an  irreducible  minimum  of  scientific,  educational 
instrument  which  has  stood  the  test  of  years  of  experience, 
which  is  in  accord  with  the  sanest  educational  theory,  is 
almost  universally  agreed  upon,  and  which,  being  accepted, 
leaves  the  student  free  for  the  investigation  of  other  problems 
which  demand  attention. 

The  space  at  my  disposal  does  not  admit  of  a  detailed  state- 
ment of  the  ways  in  which  all  the  subjects  referred  to  in  this 
chapter — ethics,  sociology,  etc. — contribute  to  educational 
science.  For  purposes  of  illustration,  however,  I  shall  select 
one  of  these  subjects  and  shall  devote  the  next  chapter  to  an 
analysis — somewhat  in  detail  but  still  necessarily  very  incom- 
plete— of  ways  in  which  psychology  is  of  service  to  education. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    PSYCHOLOGICAL    FACTOR    OP    EDUCATIONAL    SCIENCE. 

Adopting  the  view  that  psychology  enables  us  to  "  trace 
mental  process "  let  us  next  proceed  to  a  consideration  of 
various  modes  in  which,  when  viewed  from  the  educational 
standpoint,  psychology  does  this  in  such  ways  as  to  furnish 
assistance  in  the  solution  of  educational  problems.* 

It  may  be  noted  at  the  outset  that  if  there  were  no  develop- 
ment of  mental  process,  and  no  related  sequence  in  such 
development,  there  could  be  no  education  worthy  of  the  name. 
The  child  furnishes  the  starting-point  and  the  focus  of  educa- 
tional activity,  while  his  capacity  for  improvement,  and  the 
length  of  time  during  which  the  learning  activity  may  be 
continued,  condition  the  entire  process. 

As  has  been  pointed  out  by  Fiske,  Harris  and  others,  the 
possibility  of  education,  and,  therefore,  of  the  advance  of  civi- 
lization, varies  directly  as  the  length  of  the  period  of  infancy. 
In  the  lower  animal  born  with  fixed  instincts  there  is  but  a 
brief  period  of  advance.  The  child  of  the  savage,  and  the 
gamin  of  the  street,  evince  remarkable  precocity  along  certain 
lines,  but  they  mature  at  an  early  period  and  in  later  life 
suffer  from  the  results  of  arrested  development.  On  the  bio- 
logical side  it  takes  months  or  even  years  for  man  to  form 
coordinations  which  in  the  case  of  lower  forms  of  animal  life 
are  practically  present  at  birth.  Hence,  with  the  child  there 
is  dependence  upon  society,  calling  forth  such  moral  virtues 

*  See  Applied  Psychology,  McLellan. 

The  Psychological  Foundation!  of  Education,  Harris. 
Psychology  in  the  Schoolroom,  Dexter  and  Garliek. 
57 


58  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

as  pity,  sympathy  and  self-sacrifice.  There  is  also  an  almost 
limitless  capacity  for  progress  in  forming  numerous  and  com- 
plex combinations  of  original  activities.  Further,  there  is 
with  the  child  in  civilized  society  a  tendency  to  take  on  the 
attitude  or  spirit  of  his  surroundings ;  e.g.,  the  child  who  has 
been  reared  in  a  home  of  culture  and  intelligence  speaks  the 
language  and  in  a  great  measure  thinks  the  thoughts  of  those 
with  whom  he  has  come  in  contact.  It  is  owing  to  these 
characteristics  that  education  becomes  possible  and  necessary. 
Through  the  last  mentioned,  viz.,  the  capacity  of  adaptation 
to  environment,  society  finds  a  key  to  the  solution  of  the 
educational  problem. 

I.  The  Stages  of  Mental  Development.— Psychology  furnishes 
a  knowledge,  more  or  less  complete,  of  the  stages  of  mental 
growth  from  infancy  to  adult  life,  and  so  provides  a  standard 
and  criterion  for  discovering  what  subject-matter  is  necessary 
and  appropriate  to  a  given  phase  of  development — necessary 
to  answer  to  the  hunger  that  is  there,  and  appropriate  to 
contribute  to  the  possibilities  of  growth. 

The  most  casual  observer  of  child  nature  has  not  failed 
to  notice  that  while  there  is  great  diversity  in  development 
there  are  certain  clearly-defined  resemblances  common  to 
all ;  e.g.,  no  one  would  suppose  that  a  child  three  years  of 
age  could  comprehend  the  calculus  or  fully  appreciate  the 
beauty  and  power  of  Raphael's  "  Transfiguration  j"  nor  would 
anyone  expect  to  find  marked  differences  in  the  ability  or 
temperament  of  the  same  child  on  two  succeeding  days. 
Shakespeare,  whose  insight  into  the  working  of  the  mind 
was  so  clear  that  he  is  said  to  have  "dipped  his  pen  in  the 
human  heart,"  has  left  us  in  his  "Seven  Ages  of  Man" 
a  graphic  and  accurate  description  of  the  most  prominent 
periods  in  the  cycle  of  life.  Professor  Donaldson  (Groivth  of 
Brain,  p.  46)  makes  the  following  postnatal  subdivision  from 
the  biological  standpoint:  "  Infancy,  the  period  of  dependence 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        59 

upon  the  mother  (in  medical  jurisprudence  extending  to  the 
time  when  the  milk  teeth  begin  to  be  shed);  childhood,  from 
the  beginning  of  independence  to  the  age  of  puberty  ;  youth, 
from  puberty  to  the  completion  of  the  increase  in  both  stature 
and  weight;  maturity,  from  the  completion  of  growth  *.<>  the 
onset  of  uncompensated  decay  ;  old  age,  from  the  beginning 
of  uncompensated  decay  to  death." 

The  educative  period  is  confined  mainly  to  the  first  three  of 
these  divisions.  School  life  presents  two  prominent  budding 
periods  or  points  of  departure,  viz.,  (1)  the  conclusion  of  later 
infancy,  from  the  sixth  to  the  seventh  year,  when  the  brain 
has  attained  almost  its  full  weight,  and  (2)  the  conclusion  of 
childhood  and  beginning  of  adolescence  from  the  twelfth  to 
the  fourteenth  year  (earlier  with  girls  than  boys). 

Speaking  generally,  in  earlier  infancy  the  activity  of 
the  child  is  directed  mainly  to  gaining  a  mastery  of  the 
fundamental  bodily  organs.  In  later  infancy,  during  the 
kindergarten,  symbolic  or  play  period,  he  utilizes  his  sen- 
sation images  as  ordered  cues  or  signals  for  motor  expression 
in  play  in  which  the  interest  lies  wholly  within  the  activity 
itself.  During  the  period  of  childhood  the  response  to 
stimulus  is  postponed  for  some  time  and  action  begins  to 
be  controlled  by  the  idea  of  a  result  or  product,  instead  of 
following  the  interest  of  immediate  expression  in  play.  In 
the  period  of  youth  the  mind  takes  on  a  more  reflective  or 
scientific  attitude  and  there  comes  a  more  thoughtful  adjust- 
ment to  larger  social  relations  of  the  individual.* 

II.    The   Unity   of  Individual   Experience.  —  Psychological 

investigation   of   the    educational    process  discovers  not  only 

that  there  is   a    regular   succession   of   attitudes    toward   life 

*  See  Pedagogical  Seminary,  E.  Stanley  Hall. 
Psychology  of  Childhood  (5th  ed),  Tracy. 
Studies  in  Education,  Earl  Barnes. 
Mental  Development  in  the  Child,  Preyer. 
Studies  of  Childhood,  Sully. 
Mental  Development  in  the  Child  and  the  Race,  Baldwin. 


60  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

and  experience,  which  attitudes  reveal  themselves  in  the  child 
at  certain  fairly-well-defined  periods,  but  also  that  there  is 
an  underlying  unity  which  gives  coherence  and  identity  to  all 
experience. 

At  each  stage  we  find  an  inseparable  connection  between 
mind  and  body.  Every  conscious  experience  exhibits  a  three- 
fold aspect — intellectual,  emotional,  volitional.  The  so-called 
faculties  of  perception,  memory,  imagination  and  thought  are 
always  implicitly  or  explicitly  present  and  are  successively 
emphasized  in  the  natural  ascent  from  sensuous  to  ideal.  The 
extreme  "  dualistic,"  "  tripartite,"  and  "  faculty "  views  of 
earlier  times  have  been  abandoned  or  greatly  modified,  and 
there  is  general  unanimity  in  holding  that  from  the  functional 
standpoint  the  basic  unit  of  mental  action  is  found  in  the 
attentive  act,  and  not  in  either  a  sensation  or  a  thought. 

On  the  biological  side,  in  lower  forms  of  life,  we  find 
adaptation  of  the  organization  to  its  environment.  Even 
here  we  do  not  have  a  completely  static  condition  of  organ- 
ism on  one  side  and  environment  on  the  other.  There  is  the 
functional  life  process.  The  plant  does  not  take  up  all  that  it 
comes  in  contact  with ;  it  assimilates  that  which  is  necessary 
for  survival.  This  activity  becomes  more  and  more  complex 
as  we  ascend  the  scale  from  lowest  vegetable  to  highest  animal 
life,  and  in  man  from  infancy  through  the  successive  stages  of 
mental  development.* 

The  individual  is  organized  on  a  principle  of  well  being. 
No  matter  how  vigorous  the  personality  or  lofty  the  ideal  in 
adult  life,  at  the  beginning  the  individual  appears  as  a  com- 
plex of  instincts,  impulses,  feelings,  hereditary  powers.  It 
must  not  be  forgotten,  however,  that  these  early  elements  are 
teleological  in  character. 

Human  consciousness  at  this  stage  is  not,  as  Locke  supposed, 
a  tabula  rasa  to  be  written  upon  by  sensations.     Nor  is  it  a 

*See  The  Psychological  Foundations  of  Education,  Harris,  pp.  23-37. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        6 1 

dormant  potentiality,  which  must  be  goaded  into  activity. 
The  native  impulses  and  instincts  of  the  child  are  their  own 
alarm-signal.  There  is  a  natural  hunger  of  the  soul  to  receive 
sensations,  an  impulse  to  observe  and  to  express ;  in  other 
words,  to  develop  through  activity.  The  tendency  of  the 
individual  is  essentially  progressive.  Without  this  impulse- 
activity  there  could  be  no  growth  and  no  education.  These 
instinctive  tendencies  manifest  themselves  in  movements,  and 
as  a  result  the  child  has  experiences  of  contact  with  his 
environment,  and  certain  sensations  and  impressions  are 
formed.  At  the  beginning  of  infancy  these  movements  are 
apparently  purely  reflex.  The  eye  follows  the  light  and  the 
hand  feels  the  object  because  of  a  hunger  for  light  and  touch 
sensations. 

Nor  are  these  reflexes  in  organic  connection.  The  eye 
reacts  to  light  and  the  ear  to  sound,  but  eye  and  ear  have  no 
connection.  At  the  end  of  about  the  third  month  the  nerves 
connecting  brain-centers  take  on  the  medullai'y  sheath  and 
the  child  begins  to  be  able  to  make  coordinations  between 
different  senses.  When  he  sees  a  light  he  reaches  for  it  ; 
when  he  hears  a  sound  he  turns  his  head,  and  so  on.  He 
thus  begins  in  a  crude  way  to  form  images  or  adaptations 
of  previous  habit  to  the  building  up  of  new  experience. 

Let  us  consider  the  familiar  example  of  a  little  child 
learning  to  make  the  eye-hand  coordination,  who  while 
looking  at,  and  fumbling  with,  a  watch  happens  to  press 
upon  the  spring  and  the  cover  opens.  If  someone  closes 
the  cover  the  child  has  a  vague,  remembered,  visual  image 
of  the  watch  as  open,  and  a  kinoesthetic  impression  or  image 
of  the  feeling  of  the  muscles  of  the  arm  in  pressing  the 
spring.* 

Now,  it  is  a  tendency  of  any  image,  no  matter  how  crude, 
to  express  itself  again  in  some  way  or  other.     The  sight  of  the 

"See  Biography  of  a  Baby,  Miss  Shinns,  p.   141. 

Principles  of  Psychology,  James,  Vol.  II,  p.  488. 


62  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

closed  watch  calls  up  the  image  of  the  open  watch  and  of  a 
pleasurable  feeling  which  it  is  desired  to  have  again.  This 
visual  image  reacts  upon  the  tactual,  and  the  motor  activity 
is  repeated.  There  is  a  feeling  of  the  watch  somewhat  similar 
to  that  of  the  first  fumbling  activity,  but  the  attitude  is 
changed,  the  activity  is  no  longer  purely  aimless ;  there  is  a 
conscious  purpose  in  view,  viz.,  to  reconstruct  present  experi- 
ence by  changing  the  form  of  stimuli  received  from  the  watch. 
If  the  cover  again  responds  by  opening,  the  activity  is 
repeated.  Thus  the  eye  and  the  hand  continue  to  reinforce 
each  other  and  a  habit  of  coordination  is  formed. 

Now,  in  this  simple  beginning  we  have  in  vague  and 
implicit  form  the  elements  of  the  most  profound  and  far- 
reaching  experience  of  which  the  human  being  is  capable. 

1st.  There  is  a  unity  of  personal  experience  to  be  realized. 
It  is  the  child's  own  experience,  a  step  in  the  life  process. 

2nd.  There  is  a  problem,  a  breakdown  of  habitual  experi- 
ence ;  the  first  fumbling  activity  may  scarcely  have  arisen 
into  consciousness  except  as  by  pleasant,  emotional  tone 
accompaniment ;  but  now  there  is  a  new  coordination.  In 
this  case  the  conscious  realization  of  the  process  is  extremely 
vague  and  indistinct.  Still  there  is  a  problem.  The  situation 
is  one  of  a  watch  to  be  opened. 

3rd.  There  is  the  modification  of  past  experience  so  as  to 
transform  it  into  images  of  the  end  which  is  to  be  reached 
and  of  the  means  for  reaching  the  end.  It  is  a  situation  not 
only  of  a  watch  to  be  opened,  but  to  be  opened  through  the 
agency  of  a  coordination  of  hand-and-eye  activity.  As 
Professor  James  says,  "  In  one  sense  there  can  be  no  volun- 
tary activity  which  has  not  first  been  involuntary:"  on  the 
first  occasion  that  the  hand  and  eye  having  united  in  a  move- 
ment the  result  was  no  longer  an  eye  movement,  nor  a  hand 
movement,  but  a  third  movement — a  hand-eye  movement 
which    was   distinctly    different  from  either  of   the  others  or 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        63 

from  a  fusion  of  the  two.  In  the  earlier  simple  reflex  to  light 
there  was  a  movement  of  tin-  entire  organism,  even  involving 
sympathy  of  the  circulatory  activity,  but  the  emphasis  was 
upon  the  visual  phase.  Now,  in  the  eye-hand  movement  there 
is  not  a  divided  activity,  parti}'  eye  and  partly  hand,  but  an 
undifferentiated  unity  of  experiences,  an  activity,  a  tension 
between  the  sensational  focus  of  present  experience  and  the 
future  image  to  which  the  experience  Lends  in  its  forward 
movement. 

4th.  There  is  the  selection,  the  development  and  adjustment 
of  means  and  ends  leading  to  a  new  position,  and  actual 
experiencing  on  the  part  of  the  child.  There  is  the  reaction  of 
the  habitual  kinoesthetic  image  which  furnishes  a  cue  to  the 
adjustment  of  hand  and  eye  so  as  to  open  the  watch.  After 
sufficient  repetition  the  activity  becomes  comparatively  reflex, 
after  which  time,  if  continued  at  all,  it  is  for  the  feeling  of 
satisfaction  furnished  by  the  activity  itself. 

Now,  a  comparison  will  show  that  in  the  classification  of  a 
school  pupil,  considered  in  Chapter  III,  we  had  in  the  recon- 
structive process  a  series  of  stages  corresponding  to  those  in 
the  case  just  considered.  According  to  this  view  the  later 
stages  do  not  differ  from  the  earlier  so  much  in  the  quality  as 
in  the  complexity  of  the  experience  which  reveals  itself  in  the 
successive  stages  previously  referred  to;  e.g.,  in  the  period  of 
later  infancy  the  characteristic  unity  may  be  said  to  be  the 
story  ;  the  present,  direct  response.  In  the  period  of  childhood 
it  is  found  in  serial  order,  a  relation  of  means  and  ends,  a 
history  or  a  scheme,  which  toward  the  latter  part  of  the 
period  throws  the  emphasis  on  skill  as  the  attitude  becomes 
increasingly  mediated  and  indirect.  In  the  youth  period 
the  unity  may  be  said  to  be  law,  abstraction,  generalization  . 
there  is  a  tendency  to  seek  truth  for  its  own  sake,  to  probe 
into  the  hidden  meaning  of  things,  to  develop  technique  in 
a  scientific  way,  and  the  activity  becomes  more  and  more 
reflective. 


64  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

According  to  the  theory  of  the  unity  of  the  thought  process 
previously  referred  to  everything  depends  upon,  and  is  related 
to,  everything  else.  Voluntary  attention  differs  from  involun- 
tary in  the  complexity  of  the  operation.  Perception,  memory, 
etc.,  are  stages  of  development.  The  individual  is  not  a  passive 
recipient  of  sensations  such  that  when  acted  upon  by  a  stimulus 
he  responds  with  a  movement.  There  is  a  fixation  of  the  eye 
for  the  reception  of  light.  There  is  more  than  simple  adjust- 
ment; there  is  a  selective  and  relating  activity.  The  individual 
is  self-active,  purposive,  selective,  lying  in  wait  for,  and  reaching 
out  after,  the  right  kind  of  stimulus — that  best  adapted  to  his 
needs.  Thus  the  mechanism  of  sense  perception  is  not  a  sensori- 
motor arc  but  a  sensori-motor  circle  in  which  the  stimulus  to  be 
responded  to  locates  the  point  of  greatest  stress  or  tension.* 

Memory  is  not  a  bringing  back  to  consciousness  of  an  image 
previously  stowed  away  like  a  photograph  in  an  album.  It  is 
a  genuine  reproduction.  An  image  is  not  a  photograph  or  a 
kaleidoscopic  reconstruction  of  elementary  photographs.  It  is 
the  adaptation  of  a  former  habit  to  the  building  up  of  a  new 
habit  which  it  is  desired  to  have,  and  images  are  not  confined 
to  the  visual  type  alone  but  may  be  visual,  auditory,  motor, 
tactual,  etc. 

This  theory  exalts  initiative  to  the  highest  place  and  makes 
self-activity  the  keynote  of  all  progress  and,  therefore,  of  all 
education.  Will  is  the  entire  personality  arresting  the  move- 
ment to  see  what  ought  to  be  done  and  then  moving  forward 
to  the  attainment  of  the  desired  end.  According  to  this  view 
every  act,  no  matter  how  commonplace,  has  an  ethical  bearing. 
This  ethical  phase  finds  its  fullest  development  in  religious 
experience  where  in  the  interaction  of  divine  and  human  love 
we  reach  the  most  perfect  reconstruction  through  the  identi- 
fication of  the  imperfect  self  with  God — the  completely-realized 
personality. 

•See  article  on   "The  Reflex  Arc  Concept,"  l>y    Professor   Dewey,  Psychological 
Review,  1896,  p.  367. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        65 

Such  a  conception  of  the  thought  process  when  applied  in 
education  gives  a  practical  and  rational  solution  to  many 
problems.  A  proper  training  of  one  factor  means  a  training 
for  all  the  others  ;  e.y.,  a  correct  method  of  acquisition  of 
knowledge  will  at  the  same  time  afford  volitional  and  emo- 
tional training.  When  the  principle  is  properly  applied  in 
teaching,  development  is  not  arrested  by  remaining  too  long 
upon  the  lower  plane  nor  by  proceeding  to  the  higher  plane 
too  soon.  The  theory  holds  that  the  best  progress  is  made 
when  the  learner  is  upon  the  line  dividing  the  known  from 
the  related  unknown  (if  I  may  use  such  an  expression). 
There  can  be  no  thought  properly  so  called  unless  there  is 
a  problem  involving  a  breakdown  in  experience  and  also  a 
power  of  reconstruction.  The  stage  of  advance  reached  by 
the  learner  affords  the  key  to  the  adaptation  of  the  presenta- 
tion of  the  material  to  his  capacity  in  such  a  way  as  to  produce 
the  most  satisfactory  results. 

III.  The  Genesis  of  Habit.— There  are  certain  habits  which 
we  wish  the  child  to  form — habits  of  memory,  judgment, 
thought,  appreciation,  morals,  etc.  Psychology  shows  how 
the  raw  material  of  sensation,  interest  and  impulse  is  worked 
into  higher  forms.  It  gives  an  insight  into  the  mechanism 
involved  in  the  formation  and  exercise  of  habits.  The  pur- 
pose, however,  is  not  to  develop  mechanical  habit  regardless  of 
the  conscious  activity  of  the  learner.  The  main  thing  is  the 
interaction  of  consciousness — intellectual,  emotional,  and  voli- 
tional— on  the  part  of  the  child.  There  must  be  the  formation 
of  definite  habits,  but  not  as  ends  in  themselves,  not  as  copies 
of  what  other  people  have  learned  to  do.  The  purpose  is  to 
bring  the  child  to  a  realization  of  the  meaning  of  the  thing — 
the  desirability  of  a  certain  course  of  action — and  then  to 
control  his  habits  in  virtue  of  this  realization.  Nor  is  the 
training  to  be  considered  an  external  end  in  itself. 

There  is  no  true  method  except  in  relation  to  the  subject- 
matter.     If   psychology    is  to  be   of   service    in  education    it 


66  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

is  not  to  be  in  formulating  a  species  of  mental  gymnastics 
by  which  one  is  to  develop  certain  phrenological  bumps  or  to 
train  certain  assumed,  empty,  isolated  powers  of  observation, 
memory,  etc.,  according  to  the  view  of  the  old  "faculty" 
psychology. 

Any  real  training  of  mental  power — e.g.,  memory — is  the 
training  of  capacity  to  be  interested  in,  and  to  appropriate, 
certain  kinds  of  facts,  and  to  ignore  and  forget  others.  It  is 
training  to  a  right  attitude  toward  the  world  of  truth.  The 
faculty  of  remembering  is  simply  a  power  or  habit  of  remem- 
bering and  goes  back  to  an  adaptation  of  certain  original 
instinctive  abilities.  The  teacher's  duty  is  to  assist  in  the 
selection  of  the  best  material,  and  in  its  translation  into  the 
child  mind  so  as  to  bring  about  such  an  attitude,  i.e.,  to 
enable  the  learner  so  to  direct  and  control  his  activity  as  to 
appropriate  proper  material  in  the  quickest  and  most  thorough- 
going manner. 

IV.  The  Sequence  of  Subject-Matter.— If  we  take  any  depart- 
ment of  knowledge,  e.g.,  mathematics,  and  study  its  origin, 
history,  and  present  content,  we  shall  find  that  there  was  a 
reason  for  its  origin  and  that  there  has  been  a  method  in  its 
development.  There  is  a  sequence  by  which  each  point  follows 
in  regular  order  and  grows  out  of  the  previous  one.  This  is 
perhaps  clearer  in  mathematics  than  in  any  other  department, 
but  the  more  one  looks  into  any  subject  the  more  one  sees  an 
underlying  principle  running  through  it  all.  This  accounts 
for  the  clearness  of  exposition  of  the  person  who  has  mastered 
a  subject  from  every  standpoint  as  compared  with  one  who  has 
only  a  smattering  or  superficial  view.  The  chronological  order 
of  development  may  not  always  correspond  with  the  logical 
order,  but  there  is  an  order  which  is  best  adapted  to  the 
learning  mind. 

Again,  certain  subjects  are  best  fitted  for  producing  certain 
mental  attitudes — e.g.,  it  has  been  truly  said  that  mathemati- 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        67 

cal  study  is  the  logic  of  the  elementary  school — so  that  in  fixing 
educational  values  we  must  know  something  of  the  effect  of 
particular  forms  of  study  in  the  development  of  special  habits 
of  mind.  In  determining,  therefore,  the  kind  of  material  fitted 
for  a  certain  stage  of  life  advancement,  and  the  ways  in  which 
that  material  should  be  presented  in  order  to  reach  the  aim  in 
view,  it  is  necessary  to  study  the  subject  itself  in  relation  to 
mental  development.  Tt  is  one  thing  to  possess  an  examination 
knowledge  of  a  subject  and  quite  another  thing  to  be  able  to 
teach  it  properly.  To  accomplish  the  latter  it  is  necessary  to 
sit  down  and  consider  the  subject  from  a  new  standpoint 
altogether — to  ask  oneself,  "Why  do  I  teach  this  subject  and 
how  can  it  best  be  presented  1 "  In  other  words,  the  subject 
must  be  "psychologized."  An  example  of  this  form  of  treat- 
ment is  shown  in  The  Psychology  of  Number,  by  Dewey  and 
McLellan.  Psychology  may  not  be  able  to  say  with  absolute 
accuracy  that  a  definite  kind  of  material  should  be  given  at  a 
definite  moment  and  that  it  should  be  presented  in  a  definite 
way,  but  it  affords  the  truest  available  guide  to  such  selection 
and  method. 

V.  The  Conditions  most  Conducive  to  Educational  Activity. 
— The  advance  made  by  the  learner  is  seriously  affected  in  an 
indirect  way  by  conditions  outside  the  actual  subject  to  be 
learned  and  the  direct  method  of  its  presentation. 

The  questions  of  proper  physical,  physiological  and  hygienic 
conditions,  of  nutrition,  clothing,  temperature,  light,  seating, 
schoolroom  apparatus  and  decorations,  exercise,  fatigue,  com- 
panions, school  regulations,  discipline,  etc.,  are  of  vital  impor- 
tance in  education.  The  treatment  of  such  questions  belongs 
to  many  different  departments  of  study — medicine,  architec- 
ture, etc. ;  but  into  all  such  considerations,  psychology — more 
particularly  physiological  psychology — enters  as  a  factor  to 
show  the  intimate  relation  of  the  physical  and  the  psychical, 
and  thus  to  determine  the  conditions  best  suited  to  highest 
function. 


68  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

VI.  Application  of  the  Foregoing  Psychological  Results  to— 

1st,  The  Selection  and  Arrangement  of  Subject- Matter. — Those 
who,  without  adequate  preliminary  investigation,  outline 
courses  of  study  are  apt  to  commit  many  serious  errors. 

(a)  They  take  no  pains  to  discover  what  knowledge  is  of 
most  worth.  Having  never  considered  the  aims  or  means  of 
education  they  have  no  criterion  of  judgment.  They,  there- 
fore, select  material  at  random  and  as  a  result  much  time 
spent  in  the  schools  is  worse  than  wasted  whether  the  results 
be  viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  utility,  or  of  discipline. 

(b)  They  forget  the  individual  to  be  educated.  They  con- 
clude to  send  the  child  to  school  a  certain  number  of  years. 
They  divide  the  material  to  be  studied  into  a  corresponding 
number  of  equal  parts ;  e.g.,  addition  is  to  be  taught  during 
the  first  year,  subtraction  the  second,  and  so  on.  As  someone 
has  humorously  pointed  out,  it  seems  to  them  that  the  creation 
of  a  continent  for  each  school  year  was  a  providential  arrange- 
ment specially  designed  for  geography  teaching.  They  look 
upon  the  child  as  a  passive  recipient  into  which  knowledge 
can  be  poured  in  a  mechanical  and  unrelated  fashion.  With 
them  he  is  the  best  teacher  who  can  keep  the  largest  number 
of  pupils  perfectly  still  through  the  greatest  number  of  hours 
per  year  and  who  can  secure  the  highest  marks  for  pupils 
on  a  final  rote  memory  examination.  Such  a  conception  of 
education  ignores  the  facts  that  the  individual  is  a  personality, 
a  self-active,  living  organism,  that  every  stage  of  life  is 
important  in  itself,  and  that  attitude  toward  truth  is  more 
important  than  the  possession  of  unassimilated  knowledge. 
This  information  view  submerges  discipline,  and,  on  the 
knowledge  side,  forgets  that  not  all  material  is  suited  to  the 
organs  of  prehension  and  digestion  of  the  individual  learner 
at  a  particular  stage  of  his  development. 

Fortunately,  or  unfortunately,  human  nature  usually  rebels 
against  a  load  of  indigestible  material  forced  upon  it  from  with- 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        69 

out.  The  history  of  education  furnishes  countless  examples 
of  such  rebellion  and  of  methods  for  its  suppression.  By  many, 
corporal  punishment  was  adopted  as  the  device  to  overcome 
the  difficulty,  and  the  enforcement  of  the  motto  of  the  Hoozier 
schoolmaster  pioneer,  "  Lickin  and  larnin,  larnin  and  lickin  ; 
no  lickin,  no  larnin,"  has  been  considered  as  the  only  practical 
solution  to  the  problem.  In  fact,  there  are  still  many  who 
preach  an  educational  gospel  which  in  the  ultimate  analysis 
means  a  return  to  the  "  rod  "  as  the  panacea  for  all  ills.  On 
the  other  hand,  there  are  those  who  by  amusing  devices 
propose  to  sugarcoat  the  pill  until  the  pupil  swallows  it,  and 
it  has  been  found  that  by  such  a  method  the  pupil  by  and 
by  forms  a  habit  of  taking  anything  set  before  him,  without 
complaint. 

Many  of  the  devices  proposed  for  making  subjects  "  inter- 
esting" are  artificial  means  of  bridging  over  a  gulf  which 
exists  between  the  child  mind  and  the  subject  to  be  studied, 
a  gulf  which  is  seldom  found  when  the  material  is  properly 
selected  and  presented. 

The  result  of  creating  false  tastes  and  of  yielding  to  every 
capricious  whim  of  the  child — of  making  everything  so  easy 
that  there  is  no  obstacle — is  to  produce  an  effeminate  and 
priggish  superficiality ;  and  with  such  results  so  much  in 
evidence  it  is  not  surprising  that  there  should  be  a  reaction 
against  methods  which  make  everything  easy  and  interesting. 

Now,  as  there  has  been  greater  diversity  of  opinion  regard- 
ing the  signification  of  the  word  "  interest "  than  of  any 
other  word  in  the  vocabulary  of  education,  it  may  not  be  out 
of  place  to  turn  aside  for  a  moment  to  point  out  several  mis- 
conceptions. The  claim  that  the  material  should  be  suited  to 
the  stage  of  development  of  the  pupil  does  not  imply  the 
removal  of  all  obstacles,  but  merely  the  unnecessary  ones. 
The  material  will  still  present  obstacles ;  if  it  did  not  it  would 
be  devoid  not  only  of  interest  but  also  of  educational  value. 


70  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

Anyone  who  has  observed  a  game  of  rugby  football  should 
have  no  difficulty  in  realizing  that  an  activity  may  be  most 
strenuous  and  at  the  same  time  most  fascinating. 

As  we  have  seen,  unless  there  is  a  problem  there  can  be  no 
thought  activity  properly  so  called.  The  great  law  of  interest 
is  to  regulate  the  tension  between  the  known  and  the  unknown 
in  such  a  way  that  the  exercise  will  not  be  too  easy  and  yet 
not  so  difficult  as  to  induce  discouragement.  All  achievement 
worthy  of  attention  is  full  of  difficulty  and  any  proper  line 
of  educational  work  will  present  sufficient  obstacles  without 
creating  new  ones.  The  whole  question  of  interest  reverts  to 
habit  and  attention.  If  the  material  is  so  selected  and  pre- 
sented that  the  child  has  a  desire  to  do  something  that  is 
really  worth  while,  and  realizes  that  the  difficulty  has  a 
genuine  relation  to  what  he  is  doing,  and  that  by  overcoming 
it  he  will  be  nearer  the  accomplishment  of  his  purpose,  he 
becomes  interested  in  the  activity.  He  realizes  that  it  is  a 
something  which  is  to  be  attended  to  in  order  to  reach  his 
aim,  and  he  experiences  a  pleasure  from  each  successful 
achievement  which   spurs   him   on   to   future   endeavor. 

The  teacher's  problem  is,  then,  not  to  find  what  is  interest- 
ing, nor  to  make  things  interesting,  nor  to  remove  all  obstacles, 
but  to  bring  the  child  into  a  sphere  of  objects  and  relations 
which  are  most  worthy  of  his  attention  at  this  stage,  and  then 
to  bring  him  to  a  consciousness  of  the  meaning  of  the  thing 
and  to  direct  his  activity  upon  the  point  of  greatest  difficulty 
so  that  he  will  not  only  overcome  obstacles  but  form  a  habit 
of  looking  for  and  overcoming  them. 

To  return  to  the  former  discussion,  the  advocates  of  the 
pouring-in  process  fail  to  realize  that  the  little  residuum  of 
knowledge  which  remains  (for  most  of  it  is  quickly  forgotten) 
is  comparatively  worthless.  In  order  that  the  presented 
material  become  of  service  to  the  learner  it  is  necessary  that 
the  mind  reach  out  and  lay  hold  of  the  material  and  work  it 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        71 

over  into  a  vital  part  of  its  own  experience,  a  helpful  part  of 
its  powers  of  action. 

The  material  to  be  learned  is  not  something  which  hangs 
in  the  air  statically.  It  exists  in  the  consciousness  of  other 
people.  Certain  experiences  have  been  gone  through  and  cer- 
tain facts  formulated  and  systematized.  This  material  must 
be  detached  from  its  native  setting  and  translated  into  the 
consciousness  of  the  learner.  It  must  not  be  put  into  him  ; 
he  must  put  himself  into  it,  and  the  teacher's  business  is  to 
show  him   how  to  do  that. 

Let  us  cite  an  example  from  the  teaching  of  geography,  a 
subject  in  which  the  pouring-in  process  has  been  adopted  with 
but  little  adverse  criticism.  Some  thirty  years  ago  a  certain 
pupil  during  his  first  year  of  geography  study  spent  a  number 
of  weeks  in  drilling  upon  the  names  of  the  productions  of  the 
respective  states  of  the  American  union.  The  lists  were  com- 
mitted by  a  pure  effort  of  verbal  memory.  No  attempt  was 
made  to  show  why  the  material  should  be  learned  or  to  relate 
it  to  climate,  relief,  or  any  other  fact-producing  principle.  No 
problems  of  any  kind  were  presented  for  solution.  The  result 
is  that  although  at  that  time  he  could  recite  them  all  with 
ease  he  now  remembers  the  productions  of  only  one  state,  and 
as,  owing  to  various  causes,  the  products  of  this  state  have 
changed  the  remembered  list  is  incorrect. 

Now,  it  cannot  be  said  that  in  the  case  quoted  the  failure 
was  due  to  lack  of  knowledge  or  of  aptitude  on  the  part  of  the 
teacher,  for  she  possessed  both  in  unusual  degree,  nor  can  it  be 
asserted  that  she  had  suffered  from  pedagogical  training,  for 
she  had  never  received  any.  She  also  possessed  a  free  hand 
as  regarded  selection  of  material  to  be  taught.  She  simply 
followed  a  method  which  still  dominates  much  of  geography 
teaching. 

There  are  many  classes  who  experience  a  shock  if  the  map  is 
hung  with  the  so-called  "south-side"  nearest  the  ceiling.    They 


72  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

have  the  feeling  that  the  map  is  an  end  in  itself,  a  something 
which  is  studied  on  its  own  account.  The  idea  of  actually 
relating  it  to  experience  outside  the  school  has  never  entered 
their  minds. 

Geographical  study  may  consist  simply  in  committing  by 
rote  certain  definitions  and  lists  of  names  of  places  without 
discrimination  or  purpose,  just  as  one  might  learn  the  epitaphs 
and  names  of  unknown  persons  from  the  tombstones  in  a 
cemetery. 

To  the  properly-educated  man  geographical  knowledge  is 
not,  as  in  the  case  alluded  to,  a  dead  weight  of  unrelated  and 
unassimilated  information.  It  is  an  attitude  of  mind  which 
gives  meaning  to  things.  The  simplest  object  of  field  or 
forest  possesses  value,  not  so  much  for  what  it  is  in  itself  as 
for  what  it  represents.  The  map  serves  as  an  instrument 
with  the  aid  of  which  the  imagination  constructs  the  actual 
scene  and  views  it  in  proper  perspective.  A  knowledge  of 
present  conditions  is  sufficient  to  enable  such  a  one  to  antici- 
pate erosion  and  upheaval,  the  building  of  cities,  and  the 
growth  of  nations.  Such  an  attitude  can  be  gained  only  by  a 
proper  adaptation  of  material  to  the  conditions  of  the  learner. 

(c)  Those  who  prescribe  courses  of  study  may  fall  into  the 
opposite  error  and  make  the  child  the  be-all  and  end-all  of 
education,  ignoring  external  factors.  Now,  the  subject-matter 
of  education  has  been  obtained  from  the  general  world  of 
experience,  history,  nature  —  sources  entirely  independent 
of  the  child.  It  has  been  pointed  out  that  the  purpose  of 
education  is  to  socialize  the  child,  to  enable  him  to  gain  a 
power  of  interpreting  his  experience  through  the  resources 
that  have  been  worked  out  and  which  have  been  inherent  in 
the  continued  process  of  civilization.  Evidently  if  the  learner 
is  to  overtake  in  a  few  years  what  it  has  taken  centuries  to 
accomplish  there  must  be  some  way  of  improving  upon  the 
original  method  of  acquisition.  Society  furnishes  the  teacher 
for  the  purpose  of  facilitating  this  process. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        73 

The  extreme  advocates  of  the  "development"  theory  have 
forgotten  that  one  of  the  fundamental  principles  which  render 
education  necessary  is  that  the  material  (dynamically  con- 
sidered) is  not.  within  the  child  and  that  it  is  desirable  that 
he  shall  be  put  in  possession  of  it.  The  extreme  advocates 
of  the  "nature"  theory  have  forgotten  another  fundamental 
principle,  which  is  that  it  is  necessary  to  "short-circuit"  the 
process  extending  over  thousands  of  years  so  as,  if  possible,  to 
gain  its  best  results  in  the  relatively  brief  period  of,  say, 
twenty-one  years  preceding  adult  life. 

Perhaps  sufficient  has  been  said  in  the  early  part  of  this 
chapter  to  show  how  by  the  study  of  stages  of  development 
and  materials  fitted  to  these  stages  the  teacher  may  be  aided 
in  avoiding  errors  and  making  a  proper  choice  of  subject  and 
sequence. 

The  courses  of  study  outlined  by  Froebel  for  the  kinder- 
garten, by  the  Committees  of  Ten  and  Fifteen  for  elementary 
and  secondary  schools,  by  Dr.  Dewey  in  Society  and  School, 
and  by  Dr.  Harris  in  The  Psychological  Foundations  of 
Education,  furnish  prominent  examples  of  efforts  which  have 
been  made  to  effect  a  classification  of  material  for  a  particular 
period  with  due  regards  to  the  needs  of  the  individual  and 
of  society. 

2nd.  Methods  of  Teaching. — In  the  reconstruction  of  the 
learner's  experience  the  teacher  endeavors  to  facilitate  the 
translation  of  the  richer  content  of  the  social  consciousness 
into  the  crude  consciousness  of  the  learner;  e.g.,  suppose  a 
child  has  reached  a  point  where  he  is  ready  to  learn  how  to 
multiply  decimals.  Now,  the  something  which  the  child  is  to 
gain  does  not  exist  in  the  book.  The  book  statement  is 
an  abstraction  of  it.  The  teacher's  conscious  experience  of 
multiplication  of  decimals  is  an  ability  to  adapt  previous 
habits  to  the  building  up  of  a  new  experience,  a  bridge  from 
one  experience  to  another,  a  device  for  facilitating  and  enrich- 


74  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

ing  conduct.  As  a  result  of  this  power  the  teacher  can  solve 
problems  and  thus  reach  ends  which  the  pupil  cannot  reach. 
It  is  this  kind  of  instrument  which  the  child  is  to  gain 
possession  of. 

As  has  been  pointed  out  it  is  one  thing  to  know  the  facts  of 
a  subject  and  quite  another  to  be  able  to  teach  the  subject  well. 
This  is  especially  evident  in  elementary  work.  To  the  teacher 
preparing  an  introductory  lesson  on  multiplication  of  decimals 
such  questions  as  the  following  demand  consideration: — What 
new  material  is  to  be  presented?  What  representative  material 
shall  be  used  in  interpretation  ?  How  shall  the  former  experi- 
ence be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  new  presentation?  Is  it  well 
to  begin  by  facing  the  pupil  with  a  difficult,  practical  life  prob- 
lem, involving  multiplication  of  decimals,  and  to  allow  him  to 
flounder  a  little  before  offering  him  further  suggestions?  Should 
he  discover  the  method  for  himself?  To  what  extent  should  the 
teacher  suggest  ?  Should  the  pupil  make  the  discovery  through 
the  adaptation  of  his  previous  habit  of  multiplication  of  frac- 
tions or  would  it  be  better  for  him  to  adapt  his  knowledge  of 
simple  multiplication  and  notation  of  decimals  without  any 
direct  reference  to  fractions  ?  Would  it  be  wise  to  begin  with 
the  multiplication  of  a  decimal  by  a  whole  number  of  one  digit 
and  then  to  proceed  by  increasingly-difficult  steps  ?  etc. 

Now,  such  questions  as  the  foregoing  arise  in  every  lesson 
no  matter  what  the  subject  may  be,  and  they  can  be  properly 
answered  only  after  a  careful  study  of  the  relations  existing 
between  the  learner  and  the  material  to  be  learned. 

An  examination  of  the  work  done  by  the  best  teachers — 
those  who  have  and  those  who  have  not  received  professional 
training — shows  that,  consciously  or  unconsciously,  they  strive 
to  answer  satisfactorily  these  questions  by  adapting  the  subject 
to  the  requirements  of  the  learning  mind.  Further,  there  is 
universal  agreement  that  certain  methods  are  preferable  to 
certain  others ;  e.g.,  thirty  years  ago  the  student,  in  learning 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        lb 

the  preposition  in  English  grammar,  was  asked  to  memorize  a 
list  of  prepositions — "about,  above,"  etc. — and  when  in  parsing 
he  came  to  a  word  mentioned  in  the  list  he  was  expected  to 
parse  it  as  a  preposition  because  it  was  included  in  the  list 
learned. 

The  student  now  approaches  the  subject  from  an  entirely 
different  standpoint — that  of  the  function  or  force  of  the  word 
in  the  sentence.  In  this  way  he  quickly  gains  an  insight,  by 
which  he  can  independently  make  as  satisfactory  a  list  of 
prepositions  as  that  which  pupils  were  formerly  asked  to 
memorize,  and,  further,  he  understands  why  the  possession  of 
such  a  list  is  entirely  inadequate. 

It  will  be  generally  conceded  that  the  statement  that  the 
latter  method  of  teaching  the  preposition  is  superior  to  the 
former  method  is  as  true  as  the  statement  that  "similar 
triangles  are  to  one  another  in  the  duplicate  ratio  of  their 
homologous  sides."  And  yet  notwithstanding  all  this  there 
are  many  good  teachers  who  are  vigorously  opposed  to  all 
study  of  method.  It  is  urged  that  the  student-teacher  blindly 
copies  the  method  taught,  that  the  model  presented  may  not 
be  the  best,  that  the  method  may  be  unsound,  and  that  the 
copy  is  always  inferior  to  the  original.  Further,  it  is  claimed 
that  an  effort  to  arrive  at  method  in  a  scientific  way  is  from 
the  nature  of  the  case  doomed  to  failure. 

Now,  an  analysis  of  these  objections  will  show  that  they 
arise  either  as  an  adverse  criticism  of  the  abuse  of  method,  or 
from  a  static  view  of  education. 

In  the  first  place,  every  teacher  must  adopt  some  method. 
It  is  perhaps  not  surprising  that  one  who  has  heard  "method" 
exalted  out  of  all  due  proportion,  or  seen  devices  for  creating 
a  false  appetite  or  unnatural  interest,  should  go  to  the  opposite 
extreme  and  say,  "  I  do  not  believe  in  method  ;  I  try  to  have 
none."  And  yet  anyone  who  teaches  must  teach  in  some  way 
and  a  description  of  what  is  done  would  be  a  description  of 
the  method  used. 


76  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

The  teacher  who  teaches  multiplication  of  decimals  by 
having  pupils  simply  learn  the  rule  and  apply  it  to  the  prob- 
lem may  consider  the  preparation  of  the  lesson  and  study  of 
mental  processes  entirely  unnecessary,  but  still  he  has  a 
method.  Further,  he  is  likely  to  defend  his  method  with 
the  argument  that  "it  is  better  not  to  waste  time  in  trying 
to  explain  such  rules  to  young  children,  but  to  teach  them 
the  facts,  and  by  and  by  they  will  understand  the  reasons." 
This  argument,  it  will  be  observed,  is  an  appeal  to  mental 
process  as  the  final  criterion.  There  is  merely  a  difference  of 
opinion  as  to  what  the  actual  psychological  facts  are. 

In  the  next  place,  the  "  blind  imitation  "  of  a  model  by  the 
pupil  in  ordinary  school  work,  or  by  the  student-teacher  in 
learning  how  to  teach,  is  entirely  opposed  to  the  dynamic 
conception  of  education  previously  referred  to.  The  ultimate 
test  of  any  method  in  any  subject  is,  Does  it  in  the  best  way 
enable  the  child  to  translate  the  social  material  into  his  own 
consciousness  so  that  it  becomes  part  and  parcel  of  himself, 
an  instrument  for  future  control  ?  If  the  saying  "  as  the 
teacher  so  the  school "  means  that  the  child  imitates  the 
teacher  in  a  blind  way,  always  following  where  the  teacher 
leads  and  learning  nothing  but  what  the  teacher  tells  him, 
the  result  is  most  disastrous.  As  an  example  of  the  results 
of  such  imitation  consider  the  case  of  an  adult  who  goes  to 
a  large  city  for  the  first  time,  and  has  a  friend  who  takes 
complete  charge  of  him  and  acts  as  guide  on  all  occasions 
without  explanation.  If  the  newcomer  submits  passively  and 
unobservingly  to  these  conditions  he  may  find  the  experience 
very  restful,  but  the  longer  he  follows  this  course  the  more 
completely  "at  sea"  he  will  be  when  left  to  himself.  It  is 
a  matter  of  everyday  experience  that  by  such  a  method  a 
person  often  becomes  "turned"  as  regards  direction — so  that, 
e.g.,  west  appears  south — and  is  never  again  able  to  orientate 
himself  properly,  no  matter  how  faithfully  and  continuously 
he  may  strive  to  do  so. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        11 

Imitation  is  a  valuable  factor  in  education,  but  not  when  it 
limits  individual  spontaneity  and  consists  simply  in  copying  an 
external  model ;  e.g.,  a  child  learns  to  swim  more  easily  if  he 
sees  others  swimming,  cind  lias  a  model  to  imitate,  than  if  left 
entirely  to  himself,  but  the  impulse  to  swim  is  not  dependent 
upon  any  external  model.  By  devoting  sufficient  time  to  it  a 
child  under  favorable  conditions  will  learn  to  swim  without 
any  model  or  instructions.  The  advantage  of  the  model  is 
that  it  enables  the  learner  to  eliminate  a  number  of  the 
elements  or  factors  of  purely  individual  experimentation. 
By  judicious  imitation  he  saves  time,  gets  quickly  to  the 
coordination,  and  omits  the  intermediate  guesses,  and,  as  we 
have  seen,  this  is  a  point  in  which  true  education  improves 
upon  the  process  of  "  nature."  Such  imitation  does  not  simply 
furnish  external  models  for  the  child.  What  it  does  is  to 
furnish  only  those  which  fall  in  line  with  his  own  natural 
tendencies,  in  order  to  save  the  waste  of  too-long-continued 
experimentation  and  to  guard  against  the  formation  of 
incorrect   habits. 

Similarly,  such  "method"  can  itself  become  an  instrument 
for  the  teacher  only  when  he  has  reflected  upon  the  subject  in 
its  logical  relations  and  upon  the  manner  in  which  it  is  assimi- 
lated by  the  mind  in  relation  to  other  studies  so  as  to  become 
a  factor  of  control.  This  means  that  the  subject  must  be 
studied  from  the  logical  and  psychological  standpoints,  in 
ways  indicated  in  the  earlier  part  of  this  chapter. 

In  addition  to  methods  of  teaching  which  have  been 
developed  theoretically  along  the  lines  just  referred  to  there 
is  a  body  of  empirical  method  which  the  history  of  education 
shows  to  have  been  worked  out  in  a  practical  way  and  to  have 
stood  the  test  of  experience.  The  value  of  such  methods  to 
check  up  and  accentuate  the  more  abstract  theoretical  formu- 
lation is  considerable  and  the  science  of  education  can  scarcely 
afford  to  discountenance  all  that  has  not  been  discovered  by 


78  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

laboratory  methods.  Everything  which  in  any  way  contributes 
to  educational  facilitation  is  of  value  and  properly  belongs  to 
the  theory  of  educational  science. 

To  recapitulate,  it  has  been  thoroughly  established  that  the 
mind  does  not  work  in  a  haphazard  fashion  but  that  there  is 
continuity  and  relation  throughout  the  entire  life  process,  that 
there  are  certain  characteristics  of  successive  stages  of  develop- 
ment common  to  all  children,  and  that  it  is  possible  to  present 
stimulus  in  such  a  way  as  to  direct  the  learning  activity  by 
means  of  external  influence.  Further,  all  these  phases  admit 
of  investigation  and  can  be  sufficiently  understood  to  render  it 
possible  to  determine  with  a  considerable  degree  of  accuracy 
what  kind  of  stimulus  should  be  furnished  at  a  definite  time 
and  the  best  method  of  presenting  it  and  of  directing  the 
learning  activity.  It,  therefore,  follows  that  much  can  be 
learned  concerning  the  best  methods  of  teaching  and  that  no 
lesson  can  be  properly  taught  without  careful  preparation  on 
the  part  of  the  teacher  both  as  regards  matter  and  method. 

3rd.  External  Conditions  of  Study. — In  no  other  phase  of 
school  life  in  America  has  the  improvement  been  so  marked 
during  the  past  few  years  as  in  the  environment  of  the 
child  during  school  hours.  As  indicated  on  p.  67,  these 
changes  have  been  due  to  a  study  of  the  needs  of  the  child 
and  also  of  the  various  departments  of  knowledge — such  as 
school  architecture — which  relate  to  the  different  forms  of 
requirement. 

Illustrations. — The  following  are  submitted  as  illustrations  of 
ways  in  which  such  training  as  that  to  which  I  have  referred 
may  prove  of  actual  service  in  the  schoolroom.  The  first  deals 
with  a  physiological,  the  second  with  an  ethical,  and  the  third 
with  an  intellectual  phase  of  school  experience  : 

1.  Treatment  of  Myopia. — A  gentleman  who  is  a  well- 
known  authority  in  a  science  department  of  university  work 
has  been  kind  enough  to  allow  me  to  make  use  of  the 
following  statement: 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.         79 

"  From  earliest  childhood  I  was  very  nearsighted,  but  I  was  nineteen 
years  of  age  before  any  person  mentioned  the  subject  to  me  or 
suggested  that  I  should  get  glasses.  During  these  years  I  had  at 
least  a  dozen  different  teachers  and  was  personally  acquainted  with  a 
number  of  physicians  who  were  friends  of  our  family. 

"At  school,  in  the  seating  of  pupils,  no  attention  was  paid  to  visual 
or  auditory  defects,  and  the  result  was  that  I  was  usually  placed  in  a 
part  of  the  room  where  I  could  read  little  or  nothing  of  what  was 
written  upon  the  blackboard.  When  the  teacher  wrote  problems  upon 
the  board  and  repeated  them  orally  I  tried  to  remember  what  was 
said,  but  when  they  were  written  without  reading  or  explanation  I 
was  quite  at  sea.  However,  I  succeeded  in  making  a  good  showing 
in  my  studies,  and  this  probably  was  one  reason  why  the  defect  of 
eyesight  was  unnoticed. 

"I  fared  even  worse  on  the  playground.  I  could  not  hit  or  catch 
the  ball,  being  unable  to  see  it  in  time.  I  was  often  hurt  and  being 
considered  clumsy  was  not  chosen  in  a  game  when  other  material  was 
available.  The  result  was  that  finally  I  was  simply  debarred  from  all 
sports.  I  got  credit  for  being  dreamy  and  for  not  observing  closely. 
It  was  a  common  occurrence  for  a  friend  to  remark,  '  I  guess  you  must 
have  been  dreaming  again  to-day.  I  passed  close  to  you  on  the  street 
and  you  looked  at  me  and  passed  right  on.'  I  would  answer,  '  Why, 
I  don't  remember  meeting  you  !' 

"Apparently  by  the  merest  chance,  one  day  when  I  was  groping 
about  for  something  a  friend  said,  '  You  are  nearsighted  ;  you  ought 
to  get  glasses.'  This  was,  as  I  have  said,  when  I  was  nineteen  years  of 
age. 

"  I  consulted  an  oculist  and  after  he  had  examined  my  eyes  asked 
him  if  he  thought  I  needed  glasses.  He  laughed  and  said,  '  I  was 
wondering  if  you  didn't  need  a  little  dog  and  a  string  to  lead  you 
around. ' 

"  My  glasses  were  a  complete  revelation  to  me ;  they  opened  up  an 
unseen  world  and  for  days  I  had  difficulty  in  adjusting  my  sensori- 
motor mechanism  to  the  changed  conditions." 

Now,  it  is  probable  that  upon  reading  the  foregoing  state- 
ment any  teacher  of  the  "dozen"  referred  to  would  admit 
that  the  oversight  was  a  serious  one,  and  would  be  surprised 
that  anyone  could  have  failed  to  notice  the  abnormality.  The 
facts,  however,  that  statistics  show  that  such  cases  of  defective 
eyesight  are  much  more  common  than  is  usually  supposed,  that 


80  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

the  tendency  of  most  school  conditions  is  to  increase  the  diffi- 
culty,* and,  further,  that  without  previous  training  the  defect 
is  almost  invariably  ignored  by  the  teacher,  should  be  suffi- 
cient reason  for  adopting  some  other  method  than  that  of 
trusting  to  the  teacher's  unaided  intuitions. 

In  a  properly-conducted  training  course  such  a  difficulty  is 
anticipated,  and  the  methods  of  overcoming  it  investigated  in 
such  a  way  as  to  render  a  subsequent  error,  of  the  nature  of 
that  in  the  example  quoted,  practically  impossible. 

One  of  the  earliest  facts  learned  in  psychological  study  is 
that  there  can  be  no  knowledge  without  a  basis  in  sense 
presentation.  In  an  investigation  of  correct  and  incorrect 
applications  (on  the  sensory  and  motor  sides)  of  this  and 
related  principles  the  fact  is  emphasized  that  there  must  be 
sense  presentation  at  every  stage  of  mental  development  and 
more  particularly  in  elementary  work.  Such  discussion  opens 
up  the  consideration  of  a  wide  range  of  schoolroom  subjects. 
One  of  these  is  the  utilization  of  the  school  blackboard.  It  is 
found  that  to  secure  the  best  results  it  is  necessary  that  the 
blackboard  be  brought  into  frequent  requisition  and  that  what 
is  written  upon  it  be  seen  by  every  pupil.  An  analysis  of  the 
visual  process  reveals  the  fact  that  there  are  many  ways  in 
which  this  desired  result  may  be  prevented ;  e.g.,  if  the  black- 
board is  defective,  if  the  word  is  improperly  written,  if  the 
lighting  is  imperfect,  if  the  teacher  stands  between  the  pupil 
and  the  written  word,  if  the  eye  does  not  function  properly,  if 
the  optic  nerve  or  cerebral  centers  are  diseased,  if  the  mind  is 
intent  upon  something  else — in  none  of  these  cases  will  a 
proper  perception  be  made. 

In  the  investigation  of  that  particular  phase  of  interference 
presented  by  defects  of  the  eye  it  is  found  that  myopia  is  by 
far  the  most  frequent  and  important  source  of  trouble.  Thus 
by  a  definite  process  of  analysis  the  student  is  brought  face  to 

*See  Nature  Fortchung  und  Schule,  Preyer,  1887. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        81 

face  with  the  problem  which  had  been  overlooked  by  the 
teachers  in  the  illustration  given. 

In  the  investigation  of  this  problem  the  teacher  in  training 
studies  the  anatomy  and  physiology  of  the  eye  in  considerable 
detail  by  dissection  and  from  model.  He  reads  widely  on  t In- 
subject  so  as  not  only  to  understand  the  conditions  but  also  to 
understand  them  in  their  relation  to  classroom  work.  The 
latter  point  is  worthy  of  emphasis.  The  physicians  who  were 
acquainted  with  the  boy  in  the  case  described  above  were  no 
doubt  quite  familiar  with  the  technical  details  of  myopia  and 
they  had,  in  all  probability,  never  considered  the  subject  from 
the  educational  standpoint. 

The  student-teacher  investigates  methods  of  diagnosis  and 
treatment.  There  are  numerous  ways  of  detecting  myopia. 
Pupils  who  are  shortsighted  may  be  asked  to  report  privately. 
The  teacher  may  notice  that  a  pupil  is  straining  his  eyes,  that 
he  holds  the  book  close  to  his  face  in  reading,  etc.  It  is  better 
at  the  beginning  of  the  term,  in  all  cases,  before  seating  a  class, 
to  have  a  visual  and  auditory  test.  A  skillful  teacher  will, 
without  any  special  apparatus,  make  such  a  test  in  a  few 
minutes  by  easily-available  devices,  such  as  writing  small 
letters  or  speaking  in  a  low  tone.  Instead  of  seating  pupils 
alphabetically,  as  is  often  done,  the  trained  teacher  seats  them 
in  such  a  way  that  they  will  be  able  to  accomplish  the  best 
results.  Further,  it  is  often  wise  for  the  teacher  to  suggest 
to  parents  the  advisability  of  consulting  an  oculist  and  secur- 
ing proper  glasses.  The  idea,  so  often  proclaimed,  that  parents 
are  inclined  to  resent  such  an  act  as  an  unwarrantable  inter- 
ference is,  so  far  as  my  experience  goes,  purely  mythical. 
Parents  are  usually  eager  to  cooperate  with  the  teacher  in 
securing  what  is  best  for  their  children. 

Now,  a  teacher  who  has  been  trained  along  the  lines  indicated 
— and  teachers  are  so  trained  in  every  good  training-school — 
has  formed  a  habit  of  dealing  with  such  problems,  is  always  on 


82  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

the  alert  for  such  obstacles,  and  as  a  result  would  have  detected 
the  defect  in  the  example  quoted.  I  think  it  will  be  generally 
admitted  that  a  teacher  who  had  received  such  training  and 
who  still  neglected  to  apply  it  should  not  be  allowed  to  teach, 
and  also  that  there  is  some  excuse  for  those  who  have  investi- 
gated such  subjects  carefully,  and  know  how  easily  the  wrong 
may  be  righted,  when  they  protest  somewhat  too  vigorously 
against  what  seems  to  them  to  be  little  less  than  criminal 
negligence. 

2.  Treatment  of  a  Case  of  Truancy. — A  boy  was  brought  by 
the  truant  officer  to  the  private  room  of  the  principal  of  a 
city  school.  He  was  reported  as  an  inveterate  truant,  idle, 
but  not  vicious.  On  the  last  occasion  he  had  succeeded  in 
playing  truant  for  over  a  week  without  detection.  He  had 
the  down  glance  and  uncouth  appearance  characteristic  of 
the  boy  who  has  come  to  the  borderland  of  tramp  life. 

At  first  he  was  reticent  and  sullen,  but  upon  being  con- 
vinced that  the  conversation  was  confidential,  that  the  purpose 
was  to  try  to  get  at  and  understand  the  situation,  that  the 
school  principal  was  really  interested  and  sympathetic,  and 
that  from  the  conditions  of  the  case  he  must  do  the  talking 
himself  if  anything  was  to  come  out  of  the  interview,  he 
slowly  changed  his  attitude   and   finally  talked  quite  freely. 

He  said  he  hated  to  go  to  school.  The  other  scholars  in 
the  class  were  younger  and  smaller  than  he,  and  he  couldn't 
learn  fast.  Some  years  ago  a  large  boy  had  coaxed  him  to 
play  truant  and  he  had  played  off  and  on  ever  since,  some- 
times with  other  boys  but  recently  mostly  by  himself.  When 
he  played  truant  he  didn't  think  about  anything  in  particular. 
He  just  watched  the  birds  and  things.  Sometimes  he  went 
in  swimming.  He  was  fourteen  years  old.  He  supposed  if 
he  hadn't  played  truant  he  might  have  been  promoted  to  a 
higher  class,  but  didn't  see  much  use  in  it  anyway.'  He 
didn't  know  what  it  was  to  be  a  citizen,  or  to  have  a  vote. 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        83 

He  knew  who  the  mayor  of  the  city  was.  He  was  at  the 
torchlight  procession  when  the  mayor  was  inaugurated.  He 
hadn't  thought  anything  about  what  he  would  be  when  he 
became  a  man.  The  difference  between  twenty-one  and 
fourteen  was  seven  years.  He  could  remember  seven  years 
back  and  that  didn't  seem  very  far  to  look  forward  to.  He 
supposed  he  would  have  to  do  something  when  he  grew  up. 
No  one  had  ever  asked  him  what  he  intended  to  do  and  he 
hadn't  thought  about  it  at  all.  His  mother  was  dead.  His 
father  was  a  tailor ;  he  didn't  think  he  would  like  to  be  a 
tailor.  Finally,  he  said  he  would  be  willing  to  go  down  to 
his  classroom  that  day  and  come  up  the  next  morning  and 
tell  the  principal  what  he  had  rather  be  when  he  grew  up. 
He  went  to  the  classroom,  was  as  idle  as  usual,  but  seemed 
more  thoughtful.  On  the  following  morning  he  was  waiting 
at  the  office  when  the  principal  arrived  and  imparted  the 
information  that  he  had  made  up  his  mind  that  he  wanted  to 
be  a  motorman  on  a  street  car.  He  expressed  his  willingness 
to  go  to  the  classroom  and  consider  the  ways  in  which  school 
work  might  help  to  make  him  an  efficient  motorman,  and 
report  the  following  morning.  During  the  day  he  seemed  more 
interested  in  the  work  and  his  attitude  had  certainly  changed 
for  the  better.  The  following  morning  he  surprised  the  princi- 
pal with  the  remark  that  he  had  concluded  that  he  didn't 
want  to  be  a  motorman ;  he  wanted  to  be  a  conductor,  and 
assigned  some  reasons  for  the  change  of  opinion.  He  was 
asked  to  report  the  following  morning  on  the  previous  prob- 
lem applied  to  the  new  conditions.  He  did  so  and  furnished 
from  memory  an  extended  list  of  ways  in  which  school  study 
would  fit  him  for  the  position  of  conductor.  The  first  was 
that  he  would  know  how  to  make  change,  and  the  last  that  he 
would  know  how  to  be  polite  to  ladies  and  gentlemen.  He 
said  he  was  willing  to  try  to  prepare  himself  to  be  a  street-car 
conductor  and  believed  he  could  keep  from  playing  truant  for 
a  month.     He    undertook    to   make  good    his    inference,  and 


84  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education, 

with  the  help  of  a  judicious  and  sympathetic  class  teacher  he 
speedily  effected  a  reform.  The  school  conditions  were  much 
the  same  as  before,  but  he  had  found  himself,  he  had  become 
properly  orientated,  and  the  work  was  interesting  because  it 
was  work  to  be  attended  to.  During  the  next  six  months  he 
never  played  truant  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  term  stood 
well  up  on  the  promotion  list.  After  that  there  was  no 
difficulty. 

I  hope  this  example  will  not  appear  trivial.  I  have  men- 
tioned the  details  of  the  experience  just  as  they  occurred, 
because  it  is  typical  of  a  large  number  of  cases  which  arise  in 
every  elementary  school.  The  treatment  may  not  have  been 
the  ideal  one,  and  would  certainly  not  apply  to  all  cases,  but 
in  so  far  as  it  was  successful  the  satisfactory  results  were  due 
largely  to  an  application  of  certain  principles  with  which  one 
should  be  familiar  before  taking  charge  of  a  class.  Let  me 
suggest  a  few  of  these : 

Before  prescribing  for  a  disease  it  is  important  to  make  a 
proper  diagnosis  of  the  case.  A  depraved  condition  is  not 
reached  in  a  few  days.  It  is  the  result  of  habit  and  this  habit 
is  usually  due  to  some  influence  unknown  to  teacher  or  parent. 
For  a  pupil  who  has  done  wrong,  frankly  to  look  at  his  case 
and  to  discover  for  himself  the  error,  its  cause,  and  remedy, 
is  usually  the  first  step  toward  reform. 

To  be  of  value  such  investigation  must  be  made  of  the 
pupil's  own  free  will.  It  will  not  be  made  in  this  way  unless 
the  teacher  is  really  in  sympathy  with  the  child.  A  good  way 
to  correct  a  bad  habit  is  to  appeal  to  a  worthy  interest  and, 
if  possible,  have  attention  centered  upon  it  until  the  individual 
identifies  himself  with  it  as  an  end  to  be  realized. 

There  are  those  who  say  "such  rules  would  be  of  no  service 
in  such  a  case.  There  is  an  instinctive  something  which  guides 
the  teacher  to  an  understanding  of  the  actual  conditions,  and 
if  he  has  not  that  natural  power  no  amount  of  training  will 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        85 

give  it."  Now,  it  is  true  that  in  the  particular  case  quoted  the 
school  principal  did  not  think  of  a  set  of  rules  in  succession  to 
see  which  might  apply  to  the  particular  case,  and  yet  he  is 
positive  that  had  it  not  been  for  a  preliminary  reflective  study 
of  children  and  of  the  psychology  of  volition  it  would  never 
have  occurred  to  him  to  adopt  such  a  course  as  he  did  adopt. 

There  are  facts  concerning  children  which  are  known  by 
every  experienced  teacher  and  which  are  at  great  variance 
with  usually-accepted  opinion ;  e.g.,  1  have  known  very  many 
cases  where  boys  have  been  given  an  option  between  a  three 
days'  suspension  from  school  and  corporal  punishment.  I 
never  knew  of  a  boy  who  did  not  select  the  corporal  punish- 
ment in  preference  to  the  suspension.  Teachers  of  long 
experience  see  nothing  remarkable  in  such  a  statement  while 
those  who  have  not  had  experience  with  groups  of  boys  are 
inclined  to  view  it  as  incredible.  In  a  professional  training 
course  such  as  I  have  referred  to  the  student-teacher  follows 
a  line  of  analysis  similar  to  that  indicated  in  the  former 
example  of  myopia,  but  in  this  case  leading  to  a  consideration 
of  the  subject  of  truancy.  He  investigates  the  subject  from 
the  standpoint  of  ethics,  of  child  study,  of  the  formation  of 
habits,  and  of  detailed  concrete  cases  similar  to  the  fore- 
going in  which  certain  remedies  have  proved  effective.  In  so 
far  as  is  practicable  by  actual  contact  with  children  in  the 
classroom  he  forms  a  habit  of  rational  investigation.  Thus 
he  gains  an  insight  which  enables  him  to  deal  with  such  cases 
in  his  subsequent  teaching  experience,  with  a  skill  which  he 
would  never  have  attained  if  left  entirely  to  himself. 

3.  Treatment  of  Nonhabitual  and  Habitual  Coordinations. — 
I  shall  conclude  by  an  example  of  the  application  of  psycho- 
logical fact  to  educational  science  in  a  specific  field  of  the 
attentive  activity.  The  following  are  three  out  of  very  many 
psychological  facts  which  have  been  established  in  the  study 
of  attention : 


86  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

1st.  To  concentrate  attention  upon  a  difficulty  to  be  over- 
come aids  the  reconstruction.  The  power  to  inhibit  irrelevant 
matters,  to  confine  one's  attention  to  the  subject  in  hand,  means 
mastery  of  the  difficulty  with  the  minimum  expenditure  of 
time  and  energy. 

2nd.  To  concentrate  attention  upon  a  well-established  habit 
is  to  arrest  the  activity  by  interfering  with  the  fluidity  of  the 
process. 

The  ordinary  experience  of  stage  fright  is  a  good  example 
of  this.  The  performer  may  know  his  lines  perfectly,  but  the 
extreme  self-conscious  concentration  causes  him  to  stumble 
and  halt.  One  finds  it  impossible  to  walk  a  plank  fifty  feet 
above  the  ground,  not  because  the  operation  is  more  difficult 
than  in  the  customary  position,  but  because  realizing  the 
danger  of  making  a  misstep  one  concentrates  the  attention 
upon  a  habitual  activity  which  requires  no  concentration,  and 
this  concentration  produces  an  artificial  activity  of  weak  and 
erratic  coordinations.  This  affords  an  explanation  for  the 
success  of  the  method  of  concentrating  the  attention  upon 
something  else  in  such  a  way  as  to  leave  the  habitual  activity 
free  from  interference. 

3rd.  As  a  result  of  these  two  facts,  and  of  the  principle  of 
the  "unity  of  attention"  previously  referred  to,  it  follows  that 
in  any  activity  the  quickest  reaction  or  reconstruction  is  made 
when  the  attention  is  focused  upon  the  point  of  greatest 
difficulty  and  when  the  comparatively  habitual  reflex  phases 
of  the  activity  are  neglected. 

When  this  third  fact  is  brought  as  a  contribution  to  educa- 
tional science  it  assumes  the  form  that  (in  learning)  the  focus 
of  attention  should  be  directed  upon  that  part  of  the  problem 
which  presents  the  greatest  difficulty  and  habitual  activities 
should  be  allowed  to  take  care  of  themselves. 

The  following  are  everyday  examples  of  ways  in  which  such 
a  principle  may  be  applied  in  the  schoolroom  : 


The  Psychological  Factor  of  Educational  Science.        87 

(a)  In  learning  how  to  spell  the  word  "  island  "  a  pupil  who 
has  studied  phonics,  and  who  hears  the  word  pronounced  for  the 
first  time,  is  able  without  any  assistance,  and  without  having 
ever  seen  the  written  word,  to  spell  the  word  correctly,  with 
the  single  exception  that  he  omits  the  letter  "  s."  Time  spent 
in  emphasizing  the  five  self-evident  letters  is  worse  than 
wasted.  Attention  should  be  given  to  the  real  difficulty 
presented  by  the  silent  letter. 

(b)  In  learning  simple  addition,  when  proceeding  from  prob- 
lems which  do  not  to  those  which  do  involve  "carrying," 
the  entire  activity  is  habitual  until  the  pupil  reaches  the 
point  where  he  has  summed  up  the  first  column  which  gives 
a  greater  total  than  nine.  He  has  then  simply  to  apply  the 
previous  knowledge  gained  in  the  study  of  notation  to  the 
peculiar  obstacle  presented  by  the  new  situation  and  this  is  a 
comparatively  easy  task  if  the  attention  be  not  unnecessarily 
spread  out  over  other  subjects  requiring  no  investigation. 

Such  a  list  might  be  extended  almost  indefinitely  and  still 
include  cases  where  this  principle  is  being  violated  every  day 
and  where  by  exercising  care  the  value  of  the  work  might  be 
doubled. 

Now,  the  teacher  in  training  should  in  this  case,  as  in  the 
two  previous  examples,  follow  a  line  of  investigation  which 
will  render  the  principle  consciously  explicit  and  form  a  habit 
which  will  ensure  the  application  of  the  principle  in  future 
work. 

An  analysis  of  the  attentive  act  in  relation  to  educational 
procedure  suggests  the  problem.  Then  follows  an  investigation 
from  the  theoretical  and  practical  sides.  A  good  example  of 
the  systematic  way  in  which  such  problems  are  now  being 
dealt  with  is  furnished  by  a  series  of  experiments  conducted 
by  Professors  Angel  1  and  Moore  and  described  in  an  article 
entitled  "  Reaction  Time  :  A  Study  in  Attention,"  Psycho- 
logical Review,  1896,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  245. 


88  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

These  experiments  establish  beyond  a  doubt,  from  the  stand- 
point of  experimental  psychology,  the  truth  of  the  principle  of 
attention  to  which  I  have  just  alluded.  Experiments  have 
also  been  performed  in  the  schoolroom  which  demonstrate  the 
fact  that  children  do  learn  more  quickly  when  attention  is 
withdrawn  from  the  easy  and  habitual  and  directed  upon  the 
new  and  difficult  coordination. 

The  fact  thus  fully  apprehended,  the  student-teacher,  as 
in  the  preceding  examples,  proceeds  to  consider  methods  of 
diagnosis  and  treatment. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THK    TECHNIQUE    OF    EDUCATIONAL    SCIENCE. 

In  the  previous  chapters  I  have  endeavored  to  prove  that 
a  science  of  education  is  possible  and  that  the  professional 
training  of  teachers  is  a  necessity.  I  shall  conclude  by  a 
brief  consideration  of  the  present  content  or  technique  of 
educational  science,  and  of  ways  in  which  this  content  may 
be  improved  and  increased. 

The  number  of  publications  on  any  one  of  the  subjects 
referred  to  on  p.  12  as  forming  part  of  a  teacher's  training 
course  is  very  great,  and  the  bibliography*  of  educational 
science  has  now  become  in  itself  a  study  of  no  small  propor- 
tions. An  attempt  to  enumerate  these  publications  or  to 
classify  them  according  to  order  of  merit  would  be  quite 
beyond  the  scope  of  the  present  work. 

While  it  must  be  admitted  that  much  of  this  material  when 
measured  by  a  correct  standard  is  found  wanting  it  is  also 
equally  true  that  a  large  portion  of  it  is  the  result  of  a  highly- 
specialized  type  of  investigation  and  has  survived  for  a  suffi- 
cient period  of  time  to  show  that  it  has  proved  of  practical 
value  in  the  solution  of  educational  problems.  Notwith- 
standing this  valuable  residuum  I  think  it  must  be  conceded 
that  educational  science  has  not  made  progress  commensurate 
with  its  possibilities  and  importance. 

"See  Bibliography  of  Education,  Munroe. 
Bibliography  of  Education,  Hall. 
Bibliography  of  Education,  Hodgins. 
Books  on  education  in  the  libraries  of  Columbia  University,  Library  Bulletin 

No.  2. 


90  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Edtication. 

Preyer  in  speaking  of  German  schools  says  (Nature 
Forschung  uml  Schule,  Zeit  3,  1887),  "  During  the  last  decade 
nature  investigation  has  without  doubt  gained  greater  influ- 
ence than  ever  before — on  almost  all  sciences  and  arts,  on 
industry  and  means  of  communication,  on  the  relations  of  men 
to  one  another  and  to  the  world.  In  ever-widening  circles  its 
growing  power  is  felt ;  and  this  activity  is  greeted  by  some 
with  joy  as  the  greatest  culture  advance  ;  by  others  recognized 
with  regret  and  opposition.  In  only  one  of  its  titled  terri- 
tories has  the  newer  nature  investigation  until  now  not  planted 
its  flag,  viz.,  in  the  school.  In  a  surprising  manner,  during 
the  general  forward  development  of  human  training  on  a 
natural,  scientific  basis,  the  schools — the  special  institutions 
for  development — have  remained  behind.  They  have  in  the 
midst  of  the  fresh  spring  green  of  the  present  retained  the 
withered  leaves  of  the  former  time." 

The  advances  made  since  the  time  when  Preyer  made  this 
statement  have  been  great,  but  they  are  scarcely  to  be  com- 
pared with  what  will  be  accomplished  when  the  full  meaning 
of  the  new  scientific  attitude  is  thoroughly  comprehended  and 
rationally  applied  in  education. 

Many  deterring  influences  which  were  then  rife  have  not 
yet  vanished  and  it  may  not  be  out  of  place  to  examine  a  few 
of  the  conditions  which  have  retarded  the  growth  of  educa- 
tional science. 

1st.  It  sometimes  happens  that  incompetent  persons  are 
appointed  to  the  supervision  of  educational  affairs  or  to  posi- 
tions as  instructors  in  teachers'  training-schools.  Possessing 
no  faith  in  educational  science  and  no  practical  knowledge 
concerning  it,  instead  of  leading  the  way,  and  inspiring  and 
encouraging  to  better  things,  they  act  simply  as  clogs  upon 
the  wheels  of  progress. 

A  striking  illustration  of  the  results  of  incompetent  super- 
vision is  afforded  by  the  history  of    the   educational   system 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  91 

of  the  kingdom  of  Greece  as  outlined  in  an  article — "  Der 
elementar  unterricht  im  Konigreich  Griechenland  " — by  Ch. 
Pamarku,  Athens,  in  Deutche  Zeitschrift  fur  Auslandisches 
Unterrichts  wesen  for  October,  1900.  The  article  states  that, 
from  1834  to  1895  there  was  a  steady  advance  in  education. 
At  the  latter  date  the  system  had  become  well  organized. 
There  was  careful  and  intelligent  supervision  from  the 
"Ministry  of  Education"  down.  The  finances  of  the  system 
were  placed  upon  a  sound  basis.  There  were  free  schools, 
trained  teachers,  compulsory  education,  etc.  During  the 
three  years  immediately  preceding  1895  the  yearly  attend- 
ance increased  from  60,000  to  158,644  pupils.  The  writer 
goes  on  to  say  : — 

"On  the  27th  of  September,  1895,  the  law  concerning  elementary 
and  common  school  instruction  was  passed,  which  is  still  in  force.  By 
the  78th  article  of  this  law  all  laws  and  other  regulations  which 
until  then  had  had  some  influence  on  the  advance  of  common-school 
instruction  were  repealed. 

"According  to  this  law,  which  probably  stands  alone  in  the  history 
of  education  in  civilized  countries,  the  duty  of  supervising  and  regu- 
lating public  instruction  was  taken  from  the  minister  and  transferred 
to  inspectors  and  supervisory  boards,  that  is  to  say,  higher  clergymen, 
land  owners,  merchants  and  manufacturers,  physicians  and  lawyers, 
directors  of  private  schools  and  pensioned  military  men.  The  local 
boards  were  completely  ignored  and  made  servants  of  the  inspectors, 
as  these  and  the  supervisor}'  boards  took  from  them  the  right  to 
govern  the  schools  in  their  communities  and  even  deprived  them  of 
the  privilege  of  supervising  them.  The  teachers  were  robbed  of  their 
independence  and  made  flatterers  and  servants  of  the  inspectors,  being 
forced  to  ask  them  for  appointments,  for  continuation  in  their  positions 
or  rank,  or  for  nontransference  and  nondismissal.  The  unity  of  the 
public-school  system  is  destroyed,  as  the  management  lies  in  the  hands 
of  fourteen  different  supervisory  boards  and  an  equal  number  of 
inspectors.  Thus  there  results  a  confusion  and  chaos  in  the  condition 
of  the  public  schools,  as  now  there  remains  only  an  absolutely  insuffi- 
cient and  unsafe  foundation,  viz.,  the  income  of  the  communities.  The 
instruction  itself  is  ruined  and  torn  into  shreds.  The  unified  and 
printed   programs   existing   until   then  are  thrown  to   the   scrap   pile 


92  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

and  are  replaced  bjr  the  most  widely- varying  theories  of  education  and 
instruction  held  by  the  inspectors  of  each  locality.  Without  warning 
schools  are  closed,  opened  again,  diminished  and  enlarged.  With  all 
this  the  money  of  the  state  is  wasted,  as  cannot  be  otherwise  with  the 
different  supervisory  boards,  subject  to  no  higher  authority,  and  to  no 
supervision,  swaying  back  and  forth,  and  with  the  other  concealed, 
influential  elements  back  of  them." 

In  training-schools  the  evil  effects  of  such  appointments  are 
not  so  evident  as  in  supervision,  but  in  the  end  they  are,  if 
possible,  more  disastrous.  From  such  instructors  the  teacher 
in  training  is  almost  certain  to  gain  an  attitude  toward 
educational  science  which  renders  subsequent  contribution 
impossible.  The  work  of  the  course  often  degenerates  into 
a  grind  on  "methods"  outlined  in  prescribed  text-books,  or 
into  a  blind  imitation  of  a  teaching  model  furnished  by  the 
instructor.* 

In  cases  where  the  instructor  possesses  scholarship  but  no 
professional  knowledge  there  is  a  tendency  to  adopt  the  theory 
that  the  one  thing  requisite  in  such  a  course  is  to  gain  a 
more  thorough  academic  knowledge  of  the  subjects  which  the 
students  will  subsequently  be  required  to  teach.  The  time  is 
then  devoted  to  a  study  of  nonprofessional  subjects  and  to 
preparation  for  a  final  examination  which  is  professional  only 
in  name. 

This  latter  type  of  training  is  to  be  preferred  to  the 
"  method "  grind,  for  the  student  gains  a  more  thorough 
knowledge  of  the  subjects  to  be  taught  and  this,  as  we  have 
seen,  is  a  most  important  factor  in  the  teacher's  preparation. 
Nevertheless  as  a  professional  training  course  for  teachers  it 
fails  for  two  reasons:  (1)  The  mastery  of  a  subject  on  the 
academic  or  scholarship  side  can  be  more  economically  and 
satisfactorily  gained  at  a  high  school  or  university  than  in  a 
professional  training-school.  (2)  No  matter  how  familiar  the 
teacher  may  be  with  the  facts  of  a  subject,  no  matter  how 

'  See  article  on  "  Lessons  of  School  Exhibits  at  Paris,"  by  Miss  Smith,  Kducatxonal 
Review,  Vol.  XXI,  p.  176. 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  93 

thoroughly  he  may  have  prepared  for  his  academic  examina- 
tion, he  is  still  unprepared,  without  further  consideration,  to 
present  the  subject  to  a  class.  He  must  reconsider  the  subject 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  learning  activity,  must  study  its 
genesis  and  logical  relations,  and  prepare  himself  to  translate 
it  into  the  consciousness  of  the  learner.  He  must  put  himself 
in  the  learner's  place  and  give  heed  to  countless  considera- 
tions which  are  in  no  sense  included  in  the  preparation  for  a 
university  examination. 

This  reconstructive  work  legitimately  falls  within  the  scope 
of  a  professional  training  course,  and  can  be  properly  con- 
ducted only  when  the  instructor  is  fully  alive  to  the  necessity 
for  such  reconstruction  and  thoroughly  prepared  for  the  work, 
not  only  by  an  academic  knowledge  of  the  subject  but  also  by 
a  previous  practical  investigation  of  educational  problems. 

2nd.  Further,  much  of  the  tardiness  in  the  advance  of 
educational  science  has  been  due  to  the  fact  that  probably  in 
no  other  profession  has  there  been  such  great  waste  of  good 
material  and  so  much  unscientific  production  as  in  teaching. 
A  large  percentage  of  those  who  have  been  engaged  in  educa- 
tional work  have  never  contributed  a  single  iota  to  educational 
science.  There  have  been  excellent  teachers  who  have  passed 
away  in  silence  whose  experiences  if  recorded  would  have  been 
of  inestimable  value  to  education.  There  are  many  teaching 
at  the  present  time  who  from  undue  modesty,  or  from  the 
pressure  of  daily  duties,  neglect  to  give  expression  to  the 
results  of  their  experience  and  hence  fail  to  contribute  an 
assistance  to  their  fellows,  which  would  be  of  more  lasting 
benefit  to  the  race  than  will  accrue  from  much  of  that  which 
now  occupies  their  attention.  On  the  other  hand,  there  have 
been  a  large  number  who  have  contributed  but  whose  pro- 
ductions are  comparatively  valueless  owing  to  unscientific 
methods  of  investigation.  So  much  is  this  latter  the  case 
that   one    of    the    greatest   problems    confronting    the  young 


94  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

student  of  educational  science  is  how  to  select  the  valuable 
and  discard  the  worthless. 

The  laws  of  control  most  adequate  to  the  needs  of  the  situ- 
ations which  arise  in  educational  work  are  not  learned  by 
casual  observation  nor  by  practical,  everyday  experience. 
They  are  discovered  and  verified  only  by  careful  and  continued 
investigation  just  as  are  the  laws  of  any  other  science.  Edu- 
cational advance  has  suffered  severely  from  an  ignoring  of 
this  fact.  The  result  has  been,  on  the  one  hand,  to  proceed 
empirically,  depreciating  all  experimental  work,  and,  on  the 
other,  to  experiment,  but  to  experiment  unscientifically. 
There  has  been  a  tendency  to  prejudge  the  case  and  formulate 
hastily-constructed  hypotheses.  Where  experiments  have  been 
performed  they  have  not  been  properly  guarded  from  error 
nor  continued  long  enough  to  warrant  any  definite  conclusion. 
With  some  experimenters  a  certain  hypothesis  was  to  be 
established,  a  few  unscientific  observations  or  experiments 
were  made  which  could  be  interpreted  in  such  a  way  as 
to  support  the  preconceived  theory,  and  it  was  forthwith 
propounded  as  an  established  scientific  fact. 

Other  experimenters  have  gone  to  the  opposite  extreme. 
They  have  proceeded  in  an  aimless  fashion  to  collect  trivial 
and  unrelated  facts,  leading  nowhere,  in  order  (Micawber-like) 
to  see  if  "something  would  turn  up."  They  have  simply 
observed  at  random  and  described  what  they  have  seen.  As 
a  result  much  valuable  time  has  been  spent  in  collecting  data 
which  twenty  years  hence  will,  in  all  probability,  be  forgotten, 
having  produced  little  or  no  practical  result.  An  eminent 
geologist  has  said  that  when  on  an  exploring  expedition  he 
always  has  a  number  of  geological  hypotheses  in  the  fore- 
ground of  his  consciousness  each  clamoring  for  confirmation 
or  disproof,  and  much  of  the  educational  investigation  of  the 
past  would  have  been  more  valuable  if  the  experimenter  had 
proceeded  in  a  similar  way. 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  95 

Another  waste  of  energy  has  been  in  the  reduplication  of 
experiments  through  ignorance  of  what  has  been  already 
accomplished.  A  good  illustration  of  such  repetition  is 
afforded  by  the  history  of  the  problem  of  primary  reading. 
There  have  been  thousands  of  experiments  performed  to  test 
the  merits  of  different  systems — the  alphabet,  the  word,  the 
sentence,  the  phonic,  or  some  form  of  eclectic  method.  Many 
of  these  investigations  have  been  fairly  scientific,  have  cost 
large  sums  of  money,  and  have  extended  over  many  years. 
The  results  have  established  certain  facts  beyond  all  question ; 
e.g.,  that  for  the  most  rapid  acquirement  of  power  of  word 
recognition  a  certain  use  of  phonics  is  indispensable.  There 
are  certain  other  points  upon  which  the  conclusions  are  not  so 
clear  ;  e.g.,  the  value  of  diacritical  marks.  Notwithstanding 
this  there  is  scarcely  a  city  in  which  there  are  not  some  schools 
where  instead  of  directing  attention  to  unsolved  problems 
these  historical  experiments  are  being  repeated  in  the  pioneer 
stages  and  will  be  abandoned  before  they  reach  the  high-water 
mark  of  former  investigation. 

Another  illustration  of  this  is  furnished  by  some  of  the 
nature-study  courses  put  upon  the  educational  market  a  few 
years  ago  as  new  discoveries,  but  which  seem  like  copies, 
marred  in  transfer,  of  a  course  carefully  worked  out  and 
applied  in  an  eastern  normal  school  twenty  years  ago.  They 
are  not  copies  however.  The  discoverer  of  each,  ignorant  of 
what  had  already  been  done,  had  found  the  entrance  to  a 
mine  of  wealth,  but  with  less  skill  and  with  ruder  implements 
than  those  who  preceded  him,  had  not  secured  as  valuable  ore 
as  they,  nor  had  he  even  entered  the  chambers  of  richer  metal 
now  being  mined  by  others  whose  contributions  are  an 
improvement   on    all    preceding    work. 

The  farmer  of  sixty  years  ago  cut  his  grain  with  a  sickle. 
Thirty  years  later  he  used  a  cradle  with  which  he  could  cut 
five  times  as  much  as  with  the  former  implement.     To-day  he 


96  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

rides  a  machine  by  means  of  which  he  performs  with  ease  a 
task  which  a  hundred  men  by  the  sickle  method  would  find 
difficult  to  accomplish.  Much  of  the  educational  experimenta- 
tion of  the  present  time  is  like  that  of  a  man  who,  ignorant  of 
later  inventions,  devotes  himself  to  the  improvement  of  some 
kind  of  cradle. 

In  no  other  sphere  of  labor  is  it  so  true  as  in  education  that 
half  the  world  do  not  know  how  the  other  half  live  nor  how 
their  ancestors  have  lived. 

A  few  years  ago  in  the  heart  of  old  London,  so  famous  for 
its  wealth  of  literary  production,  I  observed  a  school  class 
laboriously  learning  to  read  by  counting  one  for  the  commas 
and  four  for  the  full  stops.  In  European  countries,  renowned 
for  their  educational  institutions,  I  visited  schools  where  rows 
of  pupils  were  seated  at  long,  old-fashioned  desks,  on  benches 
without  backs,  where  the  children's  feet  did  not  touch  the 
floor,  where  some  of  the  pupils  faced  a  wall  less  than  three 
feet  from  their  eyes,  and  where  in  one  class  pupils  were  learning 
arithmetic  by  copying  long-division  solutions  which  had  been 
worked  out  for  them,  and  were  varying  the  monotony  by  here 
and  there  inserting  a  mistake.  However,  it  would  be  entirely 
incorrect  to  say  that  these  examples  are  typical  of  all  European 
schools.  As  a  matter  of  fact  it  would  be  difficult  to  find 
better  work  than  was  done  in  another  classroom  of  the  same 
building  in  which  the  foregoing  reading  incident  occurred. 

Nor  is  it  necessary  to  go  to  the  Old  World  to  meet  with 
schoolroom  surprises.  If  those  who  insist  that  "  the  teaching 
of  our  schools  has  become  too  objective  and  too  interesting  " 
were  to  visit  certain  of  these  schools  they  would  be  speedily 
disillusioned.  The  fact  is  that  many  educational  critics  have 
taken  their  cue  from  a  brief  observation  of  an  isolated  experi- 
mental station  or  from  the  public  address  of  some  extremist 
and  have  proceeded  to  criticize  on  the  basis  that  these  represent 
the  universal  conditions. 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  97 

What  is  needed,  perhaps,  most  of  all  is  a  careful  summarizing 
of  the  best  that  is  being  done  and  has  been  done,  a  history  of 
education,  prepared  by  a  committee  of  trained  experts  who 
have  set  themselves  resolutely  to  work  in  a  truly  scientific 
spirit  to  separate  the  wheat  from  the  chaff,  to  consign  inter- 
esting curiosities  to  the  museum  of  antiquities,  and  to  "  boil 
down  and  sugar  off"  the  best  that  has  been  discovered  in  all 
times  and  in  all  countries.  Such  a  compilation  must  be  avail 
able  if  mistakes  are  to  be  prevented  and  the  best  results 
obtained  from  the  expenditure  of  energy.  Much  is  now  being 
done  in  this  direction  and  much  more  must  be  accomplished 
before  the  student  of  educational  science  can  hope  to  have  a 
fair  start  as  compared  with  students  in  other  departments  of 
scientific  research.* 

A  professional  training  course  should  combine  the  theo- 
retical and  the  practical.  The  staff  and  equipment  of  the 
training,  practice,  and  laboratory  schools  should  be  the  best 
available,  and  the  length  of  the  course  such  as  to  render  the 
formation  of  correct  habits  possible.  Care  should  also  be 
taken  to  see  that  in  the  post-graduate  life  of  the  supervisor 
and  teacher  there  be  opportunities  for  further  development 
and  for  contribution  to  educational  science.  The  advantages 
of  travel,  observation  of  work  in  other  schools,  study  of  the 
best  educational  literature,  attendance  at  teachers'  conven- 
tions,   etc.,    have    been    greatly  underestimated. 

3rd.  Another  and  perhaps  the  greatest  cause  which  has 
militated  against  the  advance  of  educational  science  has  been 
the  belief  that  education  is  simply  an  art,  that  there  is  no 
such  thing  as  a  science  of  education  and  that  consequently  the 
laws,  if  there  be  any  laws,  governing  educational  procedure 
are  to  be  derived  from  other  sciences.  It  is  held  that  if  the 
teacher  has  had  a  thorough  training  in  the  cognate  sciences, 
ethics,  psychology,  etc.,  he  has  when  he  begins  to  teach  simply 
to  apply  the  knowledge  thus  gained.     Proceeding  in  this  way 

*8ee  report  of  Department  of  Superintendence,  N.  E.  A.,  Feb.,  190:;. 


98  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

it  is  evident  that  any  discovery  that  is  made  is  made  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  particular  science  studied  and  not  from  the 
educational  standpoint. 

Now,  the  results  of  the  application  of  this  theory  to  pro- 
fessional training  are  disastrous  in  many  ways  :  (1)  The  time 
required  to  get  a  good  working  knowledge  of  all  the  sciences 
brought  under  contribution  in  education  would  require  more 
than  an  ordinary  lifetime;  e.g.,  so  unimportant  a  subject  as 
schoolroom  temperature,  subsequently  referred  to,  demands 
some  knowledge  of  experimental  psychology,  hygiene,  physics, 
chemistry,  architecture,  etc.  The  student  in  training,  then, 
in  applying  the  foregoing  principle  without  having  considered 
the  educational  requirements  sufficiently  to  know  how  much 
of  each  is  essential,  is  almost  certain  to  devote  himself  exclu- 
sively to  some  of  these  subjects  and  to  neglect  the  others. 
(2)  In  such  a  course  the  emphasis  laid  upon  the  proper  mate- 
rial from  the  standpoint  of  the  science  studied  may  attach 
importance  to  what  is  comparatively  unimportant  from  the 
standpoint  of  education  and  partially  or  entirely  ignore  the 
points  most  requisite  in  the  teacher's  preparation ;  e.g.,  a 
knowledge  of  the  Alrutz  theory*  regarding  cold,  warm,  hot 
and  smarting-pain  sensations,  while  absolutely  necessary  for 
anything  like  an  adequate  knowledge  of  the  subject  of  tem- 
perature from  the  standpoint  of  experimental  psychology, 
would  be  of  little  or  no  value  in  the  treatment  of  an  actual 
schoolroom  case.  The  fact  that  the  thermometer  affords  the 
only  safe  criterion  for  temperature  is  of  slight  importance 
in  psychological  science  and  would  be  referred  to  only 
incidentally  if  mentioned  at  all,  and  yet,  as  we  shall  see 
later,  a  working  knowledge  of  this  fact  is  necessary  in 
educational  work. 

It  is  not  implied  in  this  that  a  definite  and  thorough 
training  in  such  subjects  as  physics,  psychology  and  hygiene 
per  se  is   not   a  desirable  and  necessary  preliminary  for  the 

•See  Mind,  Vol.  VI  (1897),  p.  445,  Vol.  VII  (1898),  p.  141. 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  99 

teacher's  work.  The  argument  is  that  the  teacher  in  training 
must  be  judicious  in  selecting  how  much  of  each  of  these  is 
essential  and  how  much  is  merely  desirable.  He  cannot  know 
all  that  he  would  like  to  know,  or  that  under  other  conditions 
of  life  he  could  and  ought  to  know,  but  he  can  come  up  to  the 
measure  of  his  present  possibilities  with  due  regard  to  all  his 
existing  conditions  as  best  he  can  determine  them. 

Again,  it  is  sometimes  said,  "There  are  a  few  underlying 
principles  in  educational  theory;  these  can  be  easily  memor- 
ized and  subsequently  applied."  As  a  result  of  this  view  the 
training  course  sometimes  consists  simply  in  a  memorization 
of  principles  and  of  methods  of  teaching. 

Now,  as  I  have  endeavored  to  show  there  is  no  such  educa- 
tional theory  independent  of  educational  practice,  and  if  there 
were  it  would  be  comparatively  worthless. 

I  studied  chemistry  from  a  book  for  six  months  before 
seeing  a  chemical  experiment  performed,  or  performing  one 
myself.  I  learned  the  names  of  the  elements  and  their  com- 
bining weights,  memorized  formulas,  etc.,  and  could  repeat 
much  of  what  was  stated  in  the  text-book.  That,  however, 
was  not  learning  chemistry.  When  I  came  to  investigate  the 
subject  in  the  proper  way  the  residuum  of  my  previous  study, 
in  so  far  as  it  was  correct,  was  of  some  little  value,  but,  for 
some  reason  or  other,  my  incorrect  attitude  toward  the  subject 
had  become  habitual  and  it  seemed  well-nigh  impossible  to 
eradicate  the  old  habit.  On  the  whole,  the  preliminary  text- 
book training  did  more  harm  than  good,  for  it  started  me  in 
the  wrong  direction. 

"  Do  the  thing  and  you  will  have  the  power "  is  as  true 
in  education  as  in  any  other  department.  There  must  be 
independent  thought  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  in  training 
if  there  is  to  be  real  progress.  While  avoiding  the  errors  of 
the  follow-nature  theory,  and  while  making  the  best  of  all 
that  the   history    of   education   brings  to  us,   there   must  be 


100  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

formed  a  habit  of  looking  at  things  first  hand,  of  lighting 
one's  path  by  the  lamp  of  personal  insight. 

The  teacher's  training-school  of  the  future  will  be  furnished 
with  a  library,  a  practice  school,  and  a  laboratory  school  in 
which  the  student  can  observe  the  highest  type  of  work  and  in 
which  investigations  will  be  made  from  the  educational  stand- 
point, the  conditions  being  such  that  the  children  will  not 
suffer  from  such  practice  and  experimentation. 

In  the  earlier  stages  of  the  course  emphasis  will  be  thrown 
upon  the  inductive  side.  Students  will  begin  with  an  inde- 
pendent investigation  of  the  aims  and  ends  of  education. 
There  will  be  some  experimental  psychology  and  child  study 
and  some  comparison  of  different  educational  methods  as 
students  have  already  observed  them.  Before  reading  much 
pedagogical  literature  they  will  learn  to  adjust  themselves 
to  a  consideration  of  educational  investigation  by  summoning 
to  the  foreground  of  consciousness  representations  of  their 
own  past  experiences  which  bear  upon  the  work  in  hand. 
They  will  thus  be  prepared  to  proceed  critically  and  rationally 
to  a  consideration  of  what  has  been  done  by  others  and,  in 
the  practice  school,  to  test  their  conclusions  and  form  correct 
habits  by  actual  teaching  under  supervision. 

Illustrations.— The  two  following  examples  are  explanatory 
of  ways  in  which  educational  technique  may  be  discovered 
and  utilized  in  professional  training-schools. 

I.  Schoolroom  Temperature. — Of  the  methods  adopted  by 
teachers  in  the  regulation  of  the  temperature  of  their  school- 
rooms the  following  may  be  taken  as  typical  : 

(a)  The  teacher  pays  no  attention  to  the  subject.  He  is 
physically  robust  and  has  accustomed  himself  to  rigorous 
discipline.  He  is  absorbed  in  his  work  and  does  not  notice 
extremes  of  temperature. 

(b)  The  teacher  is  sensitive  to  abnormal  thermal  conditions, 
but  he  considers  only  his  personal  happiness  regardless  of  that 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  101 

of  the  children  and  relies  entirely  upon  his  own  feelings  as 
the  standard.  If  he  feels  too  warm  he  opens  a  window  at 
one  side  of  the  room  and  a  door  at  the  other  side  and  turns 
off  the  heat.  He  then  forgets  all  about  temperature  until  he 
linds  himself  beginning  to  shiver  with  cold.  He  then  closes 
the  door  and  the  window  and  turns  on  the  heat.  He  continues 
to  repeat  this  process  from  hot  to  cold  and  back  again  to  hot 
perhaps  a  dozen  times  during  the  day. 

(c)  The  teacher  has  studied  the  subject  of  heating  and  has 
made  a  hobby  of  it.  He  can  do  nothing  and  will  allow 
the  pupils  to  do  nothing  unless  the  temperature  is  within  a 
narrow  limit  of  a  few  degrees.  He  is  constantly  consulting 
the  thermometer  and  the  pupils  and  making  changes  in  the 
heating  and  ventilation.  He  has  not  gained  control  of  the 
subject ;  he  has  permitted  it  to  take  possession  of  him. 

(d)  The  teacher  succeeds  in  keeping  the  room  properly 
ventilated  and  at  a  normal  temperature  without  appearing  to 
give  the  matter  special  concern.  In  fact,  to  a  casual  observer 
he  seems  to  pay  no  more  attention  to  the  subject  than  the 
teacher  referred  to  under  the  first  category.  There  is,  however, 
a  very  great  difference.  The  teacher  of  this  type  has  learned 
the  necessity  for  controlling  the  conditions  and  the  methods 
of  control.  He  enlists  the  wise  cooperation  of  his  class.  He 
sees  that  there  is  a  reliable  thermometer  easily  accessible.  He 
is  familiar  with  the  heating  and  ventilating  apparatus  placed 
at  his  disposal,  etc.  In  other  words,  in  so  far  as  this  part  of 
his  duties  is  concerned  he  is  proceeding  scientifically. 

Let  us  now  enquire  how  a  teacher  in  training  may  acquire 
such  attitude  and  power. 

1.  Importance  of  the  Problem. — The  first  step  is  to  familiar- 
ize oneself  sufficiently  with  the  facts  to  make  sure  that  the 
subject  is  one  which  is  of  actual  importance  to  the  educator 
and  not  of  an  imaginary  or  trivial  character.  A  brief  con- 
sideration of  such  facts  as  the  following  should  be  sufficient 


102  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

to  show  that  the  subject  is  one  which  cannot  be  wisely  ignored 
by  the  teacher : 

Sudden  changes  in  temperature  are  usually  attended  by 
danger  and  have  often  resulted  in  severe  illness  and  death. 
As  a  rule  extreme  sensations  of  heat  and  cold  resulting  from 
sudden  changes  of  temperature  cannot  be  inhibited  and  they, 
therefore,  render  satisfactory  study  impossible.  By  slowly 
increasing  or  diminishing  the  temperature  these  extremes 
may  be  reached  without  the  conscious  notice  of  the  pupil. 
The  abnormal  condition  is  accompanied  by  certain  well- 
defined  physiological  characteristics ;  e.g.,  flushed  face,  etc. 
The  results  of  experiments  show  that  under  such  conditions 
the  functioning  power  of  the  system  is  retarded  and  that  the 
accompanying  symptoms  bear  a  striking  resemblance  to  those 
of  overfatigue.  Further,  the  question  of  heating  is  closely 
bound  up  with  the  more  important  problem  of  ventilation, 
and  the  teacher  cannot  properly  deal  with  the  one  unless  he 
understands  the  other. 

Now,  the  argument  is  not  that  every  experience  which 
interferes  with  the  educational  process  should  be  made  the 
object  of  detailed  investigation  but  that  the  difficulty  here  is 
of  so  serious  a  nature  as  to  require  such  treatment. 

2.  Methods  of  Observation. — Having  satisfied  himself  that 
there  is  a  problem  demanding  attention,  the  student-teacher 
next  proceeds  to  study  methods  of  observation  and  response. 
The  question  is  to  determine  ways  to  develop  technique, 
which  will  enable  the  teacher  to  properly  diagnose  the  case. 
Considerable  scientific  material  is  available  in  this  connection. 
Medical  authorities  are  pretty  well  agreed,  as  the  result  of 
experience  and  investigation,  that  the  best  temperature  for 
a  room  under  ordinary  schoolroom  conditions  is  from  sixty- 
three  to  sixty-nine  degrees  Fahrenheit.  Any  temperature 
between  these  limits  may  be  considered  normal,  although 
certain    factors    may    enter    in    to    change    these    limits;  e.g., 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  103 

in   a   room    where  all  are   taking  physical  exercise  the  tem- 
perature should  be  lower. 

Rubner  (Lehi-buchder  Hygiene,  sec.  5,  ch.  2,  page  157),  says  : 

"In  reference  to  the  hygienic  demands  the  first  question  is  to  what 
degree  our  houses  should  be  heated.  This  varies  according  to  the  con- 
ditions of  the  bodies  of  the  inmates.  With  muscles  at  rest  and  with 
light  clothing  high  degrees  of  temperature  are  necessary.  For  a  person 
who  is  working,  or  who  is  wearing  heavy  clothing,  low  temperatures 
are  sufficient.  A  hungry  person,  one  who  is  poorly  nourished,  easily 
freezes,  while  a  well-nourished  person,  with  a  well-developed  layer  of 
fat,  is  comfortable.  Cold  and  heat  sensitiveness  varies ;  one  may 
become  accustomed  to  a  higher  or  lower  temperature  of  the  air.  The, 
simple  feeling  of  comfort,  however,  does  not  demonstrate  the  suitability 
of  a  certain  temperature. 

"  With  the  clothing  customary  in  our  latitudes,  also  with  a  relative 
humidity  of  40  to  50  per  cent.,  living  rooms  and  schoolrooms  should 
have  17  to  19  degrees  C.  (62.6  to  66.2  degrees  F.),  nurseries,  18  to  20 
degrees  C.  (64.4  to  68  degrees  F.),  sleeping  rooms  14  to  16  degrees  C. 
(57.2  to  60.8  degrees  F.),  sick  rooms  16  to  20  degrees  C.  (60.8  to  68 
degrees  F. ),  workshops  and  factories,  according  to  the  kind  of  occu- 
pation, 10  to  17  degrees  C.  (50  to  62.6  degrees  F. ),  gymnasiums  13  to 
16  degrees  C.  (55.4  to  60.8  degrees  F.),  theaters,  concert  halls  and  ball 
rooms  19  to  20  degrees  C.  (66.2  to  68  degrees  F.). 

"The  determination  of  the  proper  temperature  will  always  present 
difficulties,  as  only  rarely  attention  is  paid  to  the  proper  choice  of 
clothing,  and  the  differences  in  clothing,  apparently  insignificant  to  the 
lay  person  or  one  less  observant,  are  generally  perfectly  sufficient  to 
explain  the  various  opinions  on  the  comfort  of  the  temperature  of 
heated  rooms.  Humid  air  is  felt  as  warmer  than  dry  air  in  medium 
and  high  temperature. 

"  One  can  readily  comprehend  from  the  above  remarks  that  in  the 
unequal  occupations  of  the  persons  in  one  room,  for  instance,  in  the 
absolute  rest  of  one,  and  the  performance  of  work  by  another,  it  is 
difficult,  even  impossible,  to  find  a  temperature  suitable  to  all.  If  in  a 
schoolroom  a  temperature  is  maintained,  agreeable  for  the  pupil,  the 
limits  of  endurance  of  temperature  by  the  teacher,  who  must  exert  his 
muscles,  will  have  been  reached." 

In  discussing  the  same  subject  from  the  schoolroom  stand- 
point Dr.  Burnham  says  (Pedagogical Seminary,  Vol.  II,  p.  31)  : 
"In  this  country  it  seems   necessary  to  have   the   temperature 


104  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

of  the  schoolroom  nearly  seventy  degrees  Fahrenheit.  It 
should  never  exceed  this,  and,  with  adequate  ventilation,  may 
be  less.  Mr.  Rafter  investigated  the  temperature  in  the 
schoolhouses  in  Rochester  some  years  ago.  By  a  preliminary 
test  he  found  great  variations  in  temperature  in  different 
rooms.  '  The  schoolrooms,  numbering  more  than  two  hundred, 
were  then  supplied  with  thermometers  and  the  teachers  care- 
fully instructed  as  to  the  manner  of  taking  observations,  etc. 
The  observations  were  taken  ten  times  a  day  for  one  week.' 
His  observations  led  to  the  conclusion  that  '  the  temperatures 
invariably  increase  as  perfection  in  ventilation  decreases.'  In 
well-ventilated  rooms  where  the  temperature  ranged  from  sixty- 
two  to  sixty -six  degrees  the  teachers  usually  testified  that  they 
found  the  rooms  too  warm  when  much  above  sixty-six  degrees." 

Another  point  of  importance  concerns  the  humidity  of  the 
air.  Experiments  made  by  De  Chaumont  and  others  indicate 
that  in  England  the  moisture  in  air  of  standard  purity  is 
about  seventy-three  per  cent,  of  saturation.  Investigations  in 
this  country  indicate  that  the  humidity  in  pure  air  in  our 
climate  is  much  less. 

In  addition  to  the  assistance  derived  from  the  study  of  the 
best  medical  and  educational  literature  which  has  been  written 
on  the  subject,  the  student  will  receive  valuable  aid  from  an 
investigation  of  heat  and  temperature  as  outlined  in  standard 
books  of  physics  and  physiological  psychology  and  from  indi- 
vidual experimentation. 

Such  reading  and  experimentation  should,  if  possible,  be 
supplemented  by  the  definite  personal  investigation  of  some 
phase  of  the  problem. 

As  an  illustration  of  such  research  work  I  submit  the 
following  outline  of  a  series  of  experiments.  My  purpose 
was  to  determine  bo  what  extent  it  is  safe  for  the  teacher  to 
trust  to  the  temperature  sensitiveness  of  himself  and  pupils 
without  consulting  a  thermometer. 

The  first  series  consisted  of  nine  tests  taken  in  a  normal- 
school  class  of  one  hundred   teachers   in   training,  all  of   whom 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science. 


105 


had  had  a  teaching  experience  of  at  least  one  year.  In  every 
case  the  student  was  asked  to  make  an  independent  guess  of 
the  temperature  of  the  room.  An  effort  was  made  to  eliminate 
every  factor  which  by  way  of  suggestion  or  otherwise  would 
interfere  with  the  accuracy  of  the  results.  With  the  exception 
of  the  first  test  the  tests  were  made  in  pairs,  the  first  of  each 
pair  being  made  soon  after  the  class  entered  the  room  and  the 
second  teal  half  an  hour  later,  the  temperature  having  changed 
during  the  interim. 

1st.    The    following    is    a    summary    of   the    nine    hundred 
guesses  made :  * 


TESTS. 

Actual 

Temperature 

of  Room  in 

Degrees 
Fahrenheit. 

Average 

Guess 

Made 

by  100 

Students. 

Lowest 
Guess 
Made. 

Highest 
Guess 
Made. 

Test  1. 

—Fifteen  minutes  after  stu- 
dents entered  room .  .  . 

70 

62 

50 

73 

(Test  2. 

—Five  minutes   after   stu- 
dents entered  room  .  . 

68 

71 

65 

80 

1  Test  3. 

—Thirty  minutes  after  Test 
No.  2 

72 

69 

65 

72 

'Test  4. 

— Fifteen  minutes  after  stu- 
dents entered  room.  . . 

69 

68 

62 

71 

Test  5. 

—Thirty  minutes  after  Test 
No.  4 

64 

68 

62 

75 

Test  6. 

— Fifteen  minutes  after  stu- 
dents entered  room .  . . 

62 

70 

65 

75 

Test  7. 
'Test  8. 

— Thirty  minutes  after  Test 
No.  6 

68 
65 

71 

66 

66 
63 

87 

— Fifteen  minutes  after  stu- 
dents entered  roc  nn  .  .  . 

68 

Test  9. 

— Thirty  minutes  after  Test 
No.  8 

73 

69 

65 

73 

"  I  am  indebted  to  Professor  Angell  of  the  Department  of  Psychology  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Chicago  for  suggestions  regarding  methods  of  experimentation,  and  to  J.  EL 
Putman,  B.A.,  Headmaster  of  the  Provincial  Model  School,  Ottawa,  Canada,  and  other 
members  of  the  staff  of  the  .Model  School,  for  data  summarized  in  this  report. 


106 


The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 


By  comparing  the  average  results  at  the  expiration  of  thirty 
minutes  of  gradual  change  of  temperature  with  those  at  the 
beginning  we  find  : — In  Experiments  2  and  3  an  increase  of 
4  degrees  was  considered  a  decrease  of  2  degrees ;  in  Experi- 
ments 4  and  5  a  decrease  of  5  degrees  was  considered  as  no 
change  ;  in  Experiments  6  and  7  an  increase  of  6  degrees  was 
considered  an  increase  of  1  degree ;  in  Experiments  8  and  9 
an  increase  of  8  degrees  was  considered  an  increase  of 
3  degrees ;  in  Experiment  8,  where  there  had  been  an  increase 
of  8  degrees  in  30  minutes,  no  student  guessed  a  decrease  ; 
84  students  guessed  an  increase  of  less  than  5  degrees,  and  no 
student  an  increase  of  more  than  6  degrees.  The  results 
seemed  to  indicate  pretty  clearly  :  (1)  That  ability  to  guess 
temperature  improves  with  practice.  (2)  That  within  normal 
limits  an  increase  or  decrease  of  five  degrees  in  half  an  hour 
cannot  be  detected  by  the  feelings. 

2nd.  The  second  series  of  tests  was  along  similar  lines  and 
included  three  school  classes  in  addition  to  the  teachers' 
training  class.     The  following  is  a  summary  of  results  : — 


Number  of  pupils  taking  \ 
the  test / 

Average  age  of  pupils 

Number  of  minutes  elapsing 
from  time  when  class  en 
tered  room  until  test  was 
taken 

Number  of  Fahrenheit  de-^j 
grees  of  change  in  tern-  \ 
perature  during  this  j 
period J 

Number  of  pupils  who 
thought  there  had  been 
no  change  in  temperature. 

Number  of  pupils  who 
thought  the  room  had 
Income    wanner 


31 
Girls. 

35 

Boys. 

33 

Boys. 

57 

Boys. 

100  N.S. 
Students 

12  yrs. 

10| 

10! 

12 

24 

30 

40 

30 

45 

40 

63 

to 

684 

+  5.5 

63 
to 
69 

+  6 

67 

to 

58 

-9 

61 

to 

74 

+  13 

65 
to 
70 

+  5 

10 

30 

33 

0 

90 

19 

5 

0 

32 

10 

101 


35 

75 

to 

67 

-8 


50 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science. 


107 


Number      of      pupils      who 
thought     the     room     had 

2 

0 

0 

25 

0 

48 

Number  of  pupils  who  said 
that  before  their  attention 
was  drawn  to  it  they  had 
noticed  that  the  tempera- 

ture was  growing  uncom- 

15 

10 

0 

28 

0 

0 

Number  who  said  they  had 
noticed  it  as  growing  un- 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

0 

Teacher's  Opinion. 

Temperature  at  which  some 
pupil    would    notice    ris- 
ing temperature   as    "too 

73  + 

69  + 

68  + 

Temperature    at   which   the 
majority  of  the  class  would 
notice  it 

77  + 

71  + 

70  + 

Temperature  at  which  some 
pupil    would    notice    fall- 
ing  temperature  as    "too 

58- 
55- 

64- 
62- 

65- 
63- 

Temperature   at   which    the 
majority  of  the  class  would 

These  experiments  tend  to  establish  :  (1)  That  under 
ordinary  conditions  one  cannot  guess  the  temperature  of  a 
room  with  sufficient  certainty  to  warrant  one  in  relying  upon 
heat  and  cold  sensitiveness  as  ;i  proper  guide  to  the  regulation 
of  schoolroom  temperature.  (2)  That  as  a  general  rule  an 
increase  or  decrease  of  five  degrees  in  half  an  hour  cannot  be 
detected  by  either  teacher  or  pupil  under  ordinary  schoolroom 
conditions. 

Now,  a  further  investigation  will  show  that  there  are  certain 
characteristics,  e.g.,  nervousness  or  drowsiness  on  the  part  of 


108  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

the  class,  which  will  suggest  to  the  observant  teacher  that  the 
temperature  is  not  normal.  Nevertheless  the  thermometer  is 
the  only  safe  guide.  We,  therefore,  conclude  that  in  every 
schoolroom  there  should  be  an  accurate  thermometer,  properly 
placed,  and  that  it  should  be  referred  to  frequently. 

3.  Methods  of  Response. — Having  learned  how  to  detect 
the  abnormality  the  teacher  in  training  next  proceeds  to  an 
investigation  of  wa}rs  of  correcting  the  evil.  Anything  like  a 
detailed  statement  of  the  best  methods  of  correction  would 
lead  us  too  far  afield  for  the  present  discussion. 

Speaking  generally,  the  teacher  should  be  familiar  with  the 
physical  and  chemical  science  bearing  directly  on  the  problem  ; 
e.g.,  the  principles  of  convection  and  of  gaseous  diffusion,  the 
composition  and  density  of  air,  impure  and  pure.  He 
should  have  a  practical  knowledge  of  the  best  means  of 
heating  and  ventilation  that  have  been  discovered,  should 
know  how  to  obtain  the  best  possible  results  with  such 
apparatus  as  he  has,  and  be  able  to  suggest  or  make  improve- 
ments when  necessary.  In  short,  he  should  understand  the 
entire  situation  in  so  far  as  it  has  immediate  relation  to  the 
problem  in  hand. 

To  recapitulate,  in  the  investigation  of  any  phase  of  educa- 
tional technique  there  is,  in  the  first  place,  the  determination 
of  a  working  conception  of  the  true  aim  of  education.  We 
next  seek  for  means  by  which  to  control  this  process  in  order 
to  attain  our  end.  The  focus  of  the  system  is  always  a  break 
in  experience  which  requires  reconstruction.  The  point  of 
greatest  breakdown  may  be,  as  in  this  particular  example,  a 
negative  consideration,  a  way  of  relieving  a  barrier  to  the 
fluidity  of  the  process.  The  teacher  says,  "  This  room  is  too 
hot;"  she  means,  "This  is  a  situation  which  interferes  with 
the  educational  activity  in  hand  and  this  system  of  experi- 
ence requires   reconstruction." 

Such  problems  are  constantly  arising  arid  one  duty  of  a 
1  raining  course  is  to  prepare  the  student-teacher  to  cope  with 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  109 

such  difficulty.  The  aim  determines  the  problem.  All  prob- 
lems are  not  equally  important.  There  are  certain  difficulties 
which  must  be  solved  in  some  way  by  every  teacher  in  every 
grade  from  kindergarten  to  university.  The  example  taken — 
that  of  heating  and  ventilation — belongs  to  this  common  class. 
Tt  is  far  from  being  the  most  important  kind  of  problem  but, 
although  comparatively  commonplace,  it  is  of  sufficient  impor- 
tance to  render  it  necessary  that  every  teacher  should  spend 
some  time  in  its  investigation. 

The  determination  of  the  necessity  for  the  consultation  of  a 
thermometer  is  but  one  of  the  many  phases  of  the  problem  of 
heating  and  ventilation  and  is,  therefore,  relatively  of  even 
less  importance. 

The  foregoing  detailed  outline  of  investigation  regarding  it 
is  submitted  simply  as  suggestive  of  treatment  which  may  be 
adopted  regarding  countless  minor  educational  problems  which 
are  still  unsolved  and  which  can  be  profitably  worked  out  by 
a  training  class  without  serious  interference  with  the  regular 
work  of  the  school. 

II.  School  Government. — Wherever  there  is  a  class  there  is 
a  social  institution  in  which  the  teacher  and  the  pupils 
participate.  The  unity  of  life  gives  the  law  equally  to  the 
one  and  to  the  other,  just  as  in  the  family  or  in  any  other 
social  institution.  There  are  certain  duties  and  privileges 
pertaining  to  teacher  and  to  pupil  respectively,  and  these 
have  been  investigated  on  the  theoretical  side,  and  scientifi- 
cally tested  by  careful  and  long-continued  experiments.  There 
are  thousands  of  definite  principles  to  be  found  in  standard 
works  on  the  subject,  whether  treated  generally  as  in  books 
on  ethics,  sociology,  political  economy,  etc.,  or  pedagogical ly 
as  in  books  on  school  organization  and  management  and  the 
history  of  education,  which  are  endorsed  by  all  who  have 
investigated  the  subject. 

These  principles  or  rules  do  not  exist  as  static  pigeon-holes 
into   which   the   teacher  can   fit  each  experience.     They  are 


110  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

valuable  only  in  so  far  as  they  serve  as  instruments  of  insight 
in  clarifying  the  given  situation.  They  aid  common  sense ; 
they  do  not  displace  it.  This  is,  perhaps,  most  clearly  illus- 
trated in  the  treatment  of  school  discipline,  the  rock  upon 
which  so  many  young  teachers  make  shipwreck.  To  take  a 
simple  example,  it  is  a  universally-admitted  fact  that  "  human 
nature  is  such  that  there  is  no  surer  or  swifter  way  to  secure 
disobedience  on  the  part  of  a  child  than  to  command  him  to 
perform  certain  acts  and  then  to  allow  the  acts  to  remain 
unperformed."  An  extreme  violation  of  this  principle  is  seen 
in  the  conduct  of  those  who  flippantly  demand  improper  or 
impossible  things  and  then  treat  the  matter  lightly  or  jest- 
ingly when  the  child  disobeys.  But  it  is  sometimes  affirmed 
as  a  corollary  to  this  principle  that  if  a  teacher  gives  a 
command  in  good  faith  and  afterwards  finds  that  he  was  in 
error  he  should  adhere  to  his  original  position  for  fear  of 
weakening  his  discipline  ;  e.g.,  a  teacher  insists  upon  the  mis- 
pronunciation of  a  word  or  gives  an  incorrect  mathematical 
solution  or  issues  an  unwise  command  or  blames  an  innocent 
pupil  and  afterwards  discovers  his  mistake.  The  question  is, 
Should  he  endeavor  to  rectify  his  error  1  This  is  no  imaginary 
case.  Where  is  the  teacher  who  has  not  had  some  such 
experience  1 

Now,  if  the  principle  to  which  I  have  referred  has  been 
learned  from  a  book  as  a  final  rule  to  be  applied  without 
examination  of  the  needs  of  the  particular  situation,  its  effect 
in  this  instance  will  be  to  interfere  with  the  general  aim  of 
the  school  and  probably  to  defeat  the  very  purpose  for  which 
the  rule  is  applied,  viz.,  the  preservation  of  good  discipline. 
Further,  it  may  prove  a  strong  temptation  to  the  teacher 
to  perform  what  is  really  from  the  negative  standpoint  an 
immoral  act,  by  serving  as  a  cloak  for  leaving  undone  what 
ought  to  be  done. 

This  apparently  extreme  exception  when  properly  analyzed 
is  found  to  be  in  entire  accord  with  the  rational  application 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  Ill 

of  the  general  principle  quoted.  The  teacher  who  corrects 
his  error  in  a  quiet,  manly  way  does  what  is  best  for  the 
community  under  the  circumstances  and  conforms  to  ;i 
principle  which  underlies  this  and  every  other  ethical  law. 
It  does  not  follow  that  lie  must  adopt  a  course  of  perpetual 
apology  for  every  trifling  act  which  is  not  ideal])'  perfect,  nor 
that  he  is  to  proceed  upon  a  vacillating  method  of  adminis- 
tration, nor  that  he  shall  consider  it  a  light  matter  to  make 
such  blunders  in  the  future.  The  law  comes  in  to  emphasize 
the  necessity  for  greater  knowledge  and  deliberation  and  is 
itself  enriched  by  the  possibility  <>f  its  application  to  this  new 
case. 

"Love  of  children"  and  "common  sense"  are  invaluable 
elements  in  the  makeup  of  a  successful  disciplinarian,  but  the 
majority  of  failures  in  discipline  are  not  traceable  to  a  lack 
of  either  the  one  or  the  other.  Such  failures  are  usual]}'  due 
to  a  hazy  conception,  or  misconception,  of  the  proper  social 
relations  existing  between  teacher  and  pupils,  to  ignorance  of 
what  ought  to  be  done  under  conditions  which  are  almost 
certain  to  arise,  and  to  the  adoption  (in  an  unexpected  crisis, 
on  the  spur  of  the  moment,  by  sheer  force  of  imitative  habit) 
of  a  method  used  by  some  former  teacher  under  entirely 
different  conditions — a  method  which  at  best  was,  perhaps, 
a  very  poor  device.  In  other  words,  the  teacher  fails  because 
he  has  not  investigated  the  subject  sufficiently  to  be  able  to 
anticipate  the  difficulty  and  deal  with  it  when  it  arises. 

So  long  as  human  nature  and  social  conditions  remain  as 
they  are,  teachers  of  large  classes,  especialty  those  in  elemen- 
tary schools,  are  likely  to  meet  with  cases  of  lying,  truancy, 
stealing,  etc.;  and  a  preliminary  investigation  of  particular 
cases,  real  or  imaginary,  will  save  them  from  many  serious 
mistakes. 

Further,  the  teacher's  failure  in  discipline  often  arises  from 
ignorance  of  the  actual  attitude  of  the  members  of  the  class 


112  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

toward  ethical  questions,  and  a  natural  tendency  to  consider 
that  the  aims  of  pupils  are  lower  than  they  really  are,  and  to 
forget  that  the  immediacy  of  the  social  life  of  the  schoolroom 
renders  decisions  upon  ethical  questions  a  necessity  for  the 
pupil  and  affords  him  an  opportunity  for  observation  of  details 
outside  the  range  of  the  teacher's  vision,  and  renders  decisions 
upon  ethical  questions  a  necessity. 

The  mode  of  development  of  the  technique  of  educational 
science  in  one  phase  of  educational  work  does  not  differ 
fundamentally  from  that  in  any  other  department ;  e.g.,  the 
teacher  in  training  gains  an  insight  which  will  enable  him 
to  grapple  successfully  with  difficulties  in  school  government 
by  a  method  similar  to  that  suggested  for  gaining  control  of 
the  problem  of  school  temperature. 

There  is  the  investigation  of  the  general  problem  of  school 
government  and  a  selection  of  difficulties  which  really  require 
investigation.  There  is  on  the  historical  side  a  study  of  the 
best  available  literature  on  the  subject,  and  on  the  practical 
side  an  experimental  investigation  of  concrete  cases  to  know 
what  ought  to  be  done  by  teacher  and  pupils  and  what  is  the 
attitude  of  children  toward  the  problem. 

The  following  may  serve  as  an  illustration  of  the  way  in 
which  such  experimental  investigation  may  be  conducted  : 

Some  years  ago  with  a  view  to  determine  the  attitude  of 
children  toward  the  subject  of  "talebearing"  I  sent  a  series 
of  questions  to  a  number  of  teachers  with  the  request  that 
they  submit  them  to  their  pupils.  Replies  were  received  from 
one  thousand  four  hundred  and  sixty-nine  persons  from 
schools  in  various  localities.  The  answers  were  written  by 
pupils  during  composition  hour;  no  comment  was  made  by 
the  teacher.  One  hundred  and  six  replies  were  received  from 
teachers  in  training,  one  hundred  from  high-school  students, 
and  the  remaining  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  sixty-three 
from  public-school  pupils. 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  113 

The  following  case  was  proposed  for  consideration  : 
"  John  throws  a  snowball  through  a  pane  of  glass  in  the 
schoolroom  window.  James  sees  him  do  it.  No  one  else 
sees  him  do  it.  They  know  that  if  they  report  the  case  the 
only  punishment  will  be  that  John  will  be  required  to  pay 
for  a  new  pane  of  glass." 

Pupils  were  requested  to  answer   "  yes  "   or   "  no  "  to  each 
of  the  twelve  questions  proposed  and  to  give  their  reasons. 
1st  Question.      "Should  John  tell  on  himself  if  the  teacher 
asks  him  if  he  broke  the  pane  ? " 
2nd.    "Should  John  tell  on  himself  if  he  is  not  asked?" 
3rd.   "  Should  James  tell  on  John  without  waiting  to  see  if 
John  is  going  to  tell  on  himself  and  without  being 
asked  to  tell]" 
4th.   "  If  James  is  asked  to  tell,  should  he  tell  without  wait- 
ing to  see  if  John  is  going  to  tell  on  himself?" 
5th.   "  If  John  does    not  tell  on  himself   should  James  ask 

him    to    tell  ?  " 
6th.   "  If  John  then  refuses  to  tell,  and  James  is  not  asked  to 

tell,  should  James  tell  ?  " 
7th.   "  If  John  refuses  to   tell,  and  James   is  asked  to  tell, 

should    James    tell  ? " 
8th.   "  When    the    teacher    finds    that    the  pane  of   glass   is 
broken  should  he  say  to    the    class    that  he  wished 
the   boy  who  broke  it  to  report  privately  ? " 
9th.   "  If  the  boy  does  not  report  privately  should  the  teacher 
try  to  find  out  who  broke  the  pane  of  glass  ? " 
10th.   "  Should  he  ask  each  boy  if  he  broke  the  pane?" 
11th.   "Should  he  ask  each  boy  if   he  knew  who    broke  the 

pane  ?  " 

1 2th.   "  If   every  boy  says  he   did  not    break  the   pane,  and 

James  says  he  knows  who  broke  it,  should  the  teacher 

ask  James  to  tell  who  broke  it  ? " 

These  questions  as  outlined  were  subsequently  discussed  at 

large  assemblies   of   teachers    and    the    greatest    diversity   of 


114  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

opinion  was  expressed.  A  number  said  that  they  believed 
"the  quietest  way  to  be  the  best"  and  that  they  made  it  a 
rule  in  discipline  to  avoid  all  disagreeable  matters  ;  in  the 
case  quoted  they  would  simply  see  that  the  furniture  was 
replaced  at  the  expense  of  the  community  and  would  ask  no 
questions.  Some  said  that  under  no  conditions  would  they 
allow  tattling  in  school ;  they  made  it  a  rule  always  to  punish 
any  pupil  who  informed  on  another,  no  matter  what  the 
circumstances  might  be.  Others  held  that  it  is  the  duty  of 
everyone  to  see  to  it  that  the  one  who  does  the  damage  pays 
for  the  repaii's  ;  they  acted  on  the  principle  that  "  to  conceal 
crime  is  to  abet  crime "  and  they  made  it  a  rule  always  to 
punish  a  pupil  who  withholds  information  under  such  con- 
ditions as  those  in  the  particular  case  proposed.  In  other 
words,  in  some  cases,  at  least,  the  solution  had  been  arrived 
at  and  acted  upon  with  little  or  no  deliberation  on  the  part 
of  the  teacher. 

On    the  other   hand,   the  written  answers   of  the  thirteen 
hundred  high  and  public  school  children  near  the  adolescent 
period  showed  that  they  were  practically  unanimous  in  their 
assent  to  the  following  statements  : 
1st.    The   cost  of  repairs   to   school   property  damaged   by   a 

pupil   should  be  borne  by  the  pupil  or  his  parents, 

and   should   not   be  imposed   upon   the  other  school 

supporters. 
2nd.  The  punishment  by  "  discipline  of  consequences  "  in  the 

particular  case  proposed  is  a  just  punishment. 
3rd.   It    is    the  duty   of  the  pupil   who  does  the  damage  to 

inform   the  proper  authorities  in  order  that  repairs 

may  be    made    and    that    the   community    shall    not. 

suffer. 
4th.   It  is  the  duty  of  the  teacher  to  endeavor  to  have  the 

repairs  made  by  the  proper  party. 
5th.   What  boys  call  "  a  row  in  school "  is  a  very  disagreeable 

thing  and  should  be  avoided. 


The  Technique  of  Educational  Science.  115 

6th.    "Tattling"  is  a  selfish  and  cowardly  habit,   not    to    he 
tolerated  except  in  ease  of  little  children  who  "do 
not  know  any   lietter." 
7th.    It  is  a    "nii'.'ui    thing    for   a   hoy   in  such   a  case  not  to 
tell    on    himself    and    so    leave   it  that  the  property 
may  not  be  repaired  and  other  boys  may  be  placed 
under  suspicion." 
8th.    Every    ease    should    be   decided    on    its   own   merits  and 
not  by  some  fixed   and   inexorable  law. 
A  pupil  twelve  years  old  in  answer  to  one  question  naively 
remarked,  "  Whether  the  boy  who  saw  the  furniture  broken 
should  tell  or  not  might  depend  on  how  large  the  other  boy 
was." 

This  example  is  not  taken  to  prove  that  pupils  always  know 
what  is  right  or  that  they  always  act  up  to  the  full  extent  of 
their  knowledge.  It  may  be  said  in  passing,  however,  that 
the  wider  and  more  continued  one's  experience  has  been  the 
more  likely  one  is  to  have  faith  in  the  ideals  of  children  and 
to  trust  to  their  sense  of  honor. 

Nor  is  the  illustration  offered  as  a  form  of  child  study  to 
be  adopted  without  consideration.  There  are  sacred  temples 
within  the  citadel  of  the  soul  which  should  not  be  rudely 
entered.  It  is  possible  that  much  of  the  so-called  ethical 
study  of  children  should  never  have  been  carried  on,  and 
that  the  results  are  at  best  only  a  test  of  the  peculiar  tenets 
in  vogue  in  the  social  environment  of  the  child. 

Many  of  the  criticisms  on  such  stud)',  however,  proceed  on 
the  assumption  that  those  who  do  not  believe  in  the  training 
of  teachers  never  make  mistakes  of  this  kind.  I  have  seen 
one  of  these  untrained  experimenters  spend  an  entire  after- 
noon with  a  class  of  fifty  pupils  investigating  in  minute 
details  the  pros  and  cons  of  a  fight  which  had  occurred  on 
the  school  ground  at  noon.  As  a  result  of  the  experiment  a 
dislike  for  school  was  created  on  the  part  of  the  pupils,  and 


116  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

on  the  ethical  side  the  influence  tended  rather  to  immoral 
habit  than  otherwise.  A  trained  expert  would  have  gained 
by  private  interview  in  five  minutes  a  more  adequate  view  of 
the  situation  than  this  teacher  gained  in  two  hours. 

The  methods  of  discipline  resorted  to  by  the  untrained 
teacher  in  "getting  experience,"  often  mar  the  harmony  of 
the  schoolroom  and  injure  innocent  pupils,  who  are  compelled 
to  gaze  in  trembling  and  humiliation  upon  scenes  which  stamp 
their  impress  indelibly  upon  the  memory. 

No  doubt  the  teacher  improves  by  the  experience  thus 
gained  and  regrets  the  mistakes  of  the  formative  period,  but 
what  about  the  children  ?  A  careful  record  of  such  irrational 
experiments,  if  it  could  be  secured,  would  prove  a  convincing 
argument  in  favor  of  a  judicious  form  of  child  study,  and  of  a 
proper  preparation  on  the  part  of  teachers. 

There  are  many  whose  opinions  are  worthy  of  carefid  con- 
sideration who  agree  with  the  statement  that  "  teachers  who 
know  nothing  of  the  reflective  aspects  of  their  calling,  who  do 
not  try  to  comprehend  as  well  as  to  love  their  pupils,  who 
despise  science  because  it  cannot  take  the  place  of  devotion 
and  of  instinct,  may  be  successful  teachers."  So  far  as  I  have 
been  able  to  observe,  however,  such  teachers  invariably  fail 
when  put'  to  the  test  of  actual  experience. 

The  conditions  of  an  ordinary  elementary  school  class — 
and  it  is  to  such  a  class  that  the  principle  is  supposed  to  be 
especially  applicable — are  usually  such  as  to  test  to  the  utmost 
the  resources  of  the  thoroughly-prepared  teacher  both  as 
regards  presentative  material  and  methods  to  be  applied.  The 
teacher  who  before  being  placed  under  such  conditions  depre- 
ciates the  efforts  of  former  teachers,  and  imagines  that  an 
abstract  principle  of  love  will  be  sufficient  to  carry  him  over 
all  obstacles,  resembles  Kant's  "  light  dove  which,  piercing  in 
her  easy  flight  the  air  and  perceiving  its  resistance,  imagines 
that  flight  would  be  easier  still  in  empty  space."     If  he  really 


The   Technique  of  Educational  Science.  117 

loves  children  he  discovers  his  error  and  endeavors  under 
circumstances  of  greatest  difficulty,  and  often  at  the  expense 
of  his  vitality,  to  correct  his  mistake. 

But  after  all  is  it  possible  for  a  teacher  to  "  love  pupils, 
without  trying  to  comprehend  them "  1  Does  not  true  love 
always  express  itself  in  an  effort  in  some  way  to  be  of  service 
to  the  object  of  its  affection  1  This  means  a  sympathetic 
interest  which  implies  a  willingness  to  put  oneself  in  the  place 
of  the  one  to  be  helped  and  to  see  things  from  his  standpoint, 
and  surely  this  cannot  be  done  without  an  effort  to  understand 
the  situation. 

There  is  a  better  way  than  that  adopted  by  the  teacher  who 
relies  entirely  upon  the  love  instinct,  on  the  one  hand,  or  that 
adopted  by  the  superficial  pedant  who  works  entirely  by  copied 
rules,  on  the  other. 

One  of  the  functions  of  a  teacher's  training-school,  as  I 
understand  it,  is  to  prevent  either  of  these  classes  from 
attempting  to  teach.  A  training  course  should  be  only  for 
those  who  do  possess  natural  aptitude  for  teaching.  It  should 
enable  them  to  combine  love's  individual  liberty  of  action  with 
the  insight  gained  through  training  and  experience,  and  so  the 
more  nearly  to  attain  the  lofty  ideal  of  a  true  educationist. 
This  implies  an  ability,  as  each  of  the  endless  contingencies 
of  school  life  arises,  at  once  to  select  the  best  possible  line  of 
conduct  having  in  view  past  experience,  the  present  needs  of 
the  situation  and  the  development  of  the  child  for  his  subse- 
quent place  in  the  social  structure.* 

*  For  other  examples  of  similar  investigation  by  the  author  see  : 
(a)  "Schoolroom  Fatigue,"  School  Journal,  New  York,  1896,  p.  573. 
(6)  "  Ethics    of    Talebearing,"    Proceedings    Ontario    Educational    Association, 

Toronto,    1898,    p.    238. 
(c)  "Canadian    Normal   Schools,"   Pedagogical  Seminary,  Clark  University,  1894, 
p.   461. 


118  The  Possibility  of  a  Science  of  Education. 

Summary. 

In  the  foregoing  argument  I  have  endeavored  to  establish 
the  following : — 

1st.  In  considering  the  meaning  of  the  term  "science" 
emphasis  should  be  placed  upon  the  functional  or  dynamic 
phase  of  science  as  furnishing  a  carefully-constructed  instru- 
ment of  control  by  which  future  advance  will  be  rendered  less 
difficult. 

2nd.  If  we  adopt  a  functional  criterion  for  science  and 
education  it  follows  that  a  science  of  education  is  possible. 

3rd.  Educational  science  is  not  an  application  of  any  other 
science  or  group  of  sciences  but  is  itself  an  independent 
science  with  a  technique  of  its  own  developed  by  an  investi- 
gation of  problems  from  a  purely  educational  standpoint. 

4th.  The  aims  of  educational  science  are  formulated  mainly 
upon  an  ethical  basis ;  the  means  upon  a  psychological  basis. 

5th.  All  teachers  should  receive  professional  training. 

6th.  A  good  physique,  natural  aptitude,  scholarship  and 
culture,  should  be  demanded  as  prerequisites  to  such  training. 

7th.  The  adverse  criticisms  usually  urged  against  the  pro- 
fessional training  of  teachers  are  chiefly  due  to  four  causes  : 

(a)  A  misstatement  of  the  real  question  at  issue. 

(b)  Lack  of  knowledge  concerning  the  actual  facts. 

(c)  Defects  in  existing  training-schools. 

(d)  A  static  view  of  education  and  of  science. 


APPKNDIX. 

QUOTATIONS    FROM    REPLIES    RECEIVED    FROM    UNIVERSITY 
PROFESSORS. 

"  Speaking  generally,  the  first  and  most  essential  prerequisite 
for  placing  the  training  of  teachers  upon  a  scientific  basis  is 
insistence  upon  the  most  thorough  and  scholarly  attainments 
in  the  subjects  to  be  taught. 

"  In  addition  to  that  the  more  one  can  know  of  the  history 
of  education,  and  the  organization  of  educational  systems  with 
their  consequent  results  in  the  producing  of  men,  the  better 
and  wiser  teacher  and  administrator  is  one  likely  to  be. 

"There  is  at  present  too  great  diversity  of  opinion  touching 
the  '  true  psychological  gospel '  of  the  educational  process 
to  render  insistence  upon  assent  to  any  one  theory  either 
justifiable  or  wise. 

"Personally  I  believe  that  modern  psychology  with  its 
pedagogical  implications  is  of  utmost  significance  for  sanity 
and  wisdom  of  procedure  in  elementary  instruction. 

"  I  think  that  such  knowledge  is,  under  the  existing  educa- 
tional system  in  this  country,  of  less  moment  as  one  goes  upward 
in  the  educational  levels,  and,  therefore,  of  least  importance 
practically  in  university  work.  Even  there,  however,  I  think 
such  knowledge  undoubtedly  conduces  to  judicious  and  intelli- 
gent method. 

"  It  is  not  for  a  moment  implied  in  all  this  that  anyone  can 
be  converted  into  a  good  teacher  by  the  employment  of  any 
method  whatever.  It  is  a  question  of  simply  securing  the 
maximum  of  efficiency  from  specific  individuals. 

119 


1 20  Appendix. 

"The  great  teacher  will  still  be  born  rather  than  made  ; 
he  will  in  largest  measure  use  sound  methods  in  the  actual 
conduct  of  his  work  instinctively." 

"  The  normal  school  emphasizes  method ;  the  college  insists 
on  knowledge.     The  happy  mean  is  best." 

"When  the  public  recognizes  the  lamentable  deficiency  of 
present  methods  it  will  demand  better  trained  teachers.  The 
recognition  and  the  demand  will  come  gradually.  The  present 
system  is  emphatically  more  desirable  than  no  system,  but  it 
could  be  greatly  improved  in  all  grades." 

"More  can,  must  and  will  be  done  to  make  teaching  a 
profession  in  the  highest  sense  of  the  term." 

"  Modern  pedagogical  courses  tend  to  save  beginners  from 
making  the  mistakes  which  their  predecessors  made  and  to 
learn  like  wise  men  from  the  failure  of  others." 

"  Professional  training  of  the  right  kind  and  within  proper 
limits  is  desirable  for  all  teachers  from  the  university  down." 

"  For  secondary,  college  and  university  teachers  the  first 
requisite  is  to  know  the  subject,  and  the  second  to  be  endowed 
by  Providence  with  common  sense  ;  a  knowledge  of  the  history 
of  education,  of  psychology  and  of  the  art  of  teaching,  are 
highly  desirable,  but  by  no  means  so  desirable  as  the  two 
requisites  named  above." 

"  Most  normal  schools  emphasize  methods  regardless  of 
whether  the  subject  has  been  mastered.  On  the  other  hand, 
college  teachers,  while  insisting  on  a  thorough  knowledge  of 
subjects,  often  take  but  little  pains  in  presenting  subjects  as 
they  ought  to  be  presented.  There  is  a  happy  mean  which 
would  improve  both  classes  of  teachers." 

"  The  teaching  of  methods  and  school  routine  is  likely  to 
do  more  harm  than  good.  If  the  history  of  education  and 
psychology  are  attempted  they  should  not  be  the  mutilated 
things  they  now  are.  They  should  form  parts  of  general 
history  and  psychology  in  a  true  scientific  sense." 


Appendix.  121 

"Experience  in  teaching  should  precede  professional  train- 
ing. 

"The  present  academic  requirements  for  professional  study 
should  be  raised." 

"  The  pedagogical  training  in  normal  schools  and  universities 
is  good  only  in  spots." 

"  We  cannot  advantageously  combine  instruction  in  the 
subject-matter  of  knowledge  and  instruction  in  methods  of 
communicating  that  knowledge." 

"  The  main  defect  of  teachers  at  present  seems  to  be  a  lack 
of  knowledge  of  the  subjects  which  they  undertake  to  teach." 

"  As  a  poor  method  becomes  good  in  the  hands  of  one  who 
enjoys  it,  so  a  good  method  becomes  positively  bad  when  used 
by  one  who  has  not  adapted  himself  to  it." 

"  If  a  teacher  has  not  a  thorough  knowledge  of  his  subject, 
methods  won't  save  him." 

"  The  lessons  which  a  teacher  in  training  actually  teaches 
under  the  observation  and  subsequent  criticism  of  a  competent 
and  experienced  teacher  is,  in  my  opinion,  the  only  part  of  the 
present  system  that  is  of  value." 

"  The  great  weakness  is  not  in  the  training  of  teachers  but 
in  the  political  nature  of  appointments  and  the  meagerness  of 
salaries  offered,  which  fill  the  schools  with  men  of  lesser  qualities 
and  with  immature  girls." 

"  Normal  schools  should  confine  themselves  to  the  training 
of  teachers  for  elementary  schools." 

"  University  pedagogical  training  should  be  post  graduate." 

"  I  should  not  favor  any  sacrifice  of  scholarship  to  technical 
professional  training." 

"  The  good  teacher  is  born  not  made.  The  best  student 
is  the  best  teacher.  He  who  keeps  up  his  enthusiasm  for 
scientific  truth  and  gives  to  it  a  personal  interest  in  his 
students  will  be  the  most  successful  teacher  everywhere." 


122  Appendix. 

" 1  do  not  believe  there  can  be  much  profit  in  learning  to 
teach  a  subject  by  one  who  is  not  proficient  in  the  subject." 

"  Professional  training  for  university  teachers  would  be 
undesirable.  It  is  better  to  depend  on  our  present  general 
method  of  subjecting  the  teacher  to  university  training  and 
taking  the  strong  man  when  he  is  kind  enough  to  turn  up." 

"  The  best  training  lies  in  working  with  a  good  worker  and 
catching  his  spirit." 

"  The  training  of  teachers  is  on  the  best  scientific  basis 
attainable  when  it  includes  the  best  of  what  is  comprised  in 
the  courses  leading  up  to  the  two  degrees  of  A.B.  and  Ph.D." 

"  Teachers  in  elementary  schools  have  not  a  sufficient 
background  of  information  discipline  in  subject-matter.  In 
universities  there  is  lack  of  method.  Every  teacher  should 
have  a  college  education  or  its  equivalent,  some  instruction 
in  general  educational  problems  and  history,  and,  for  most 
teachers,  some  training  in  technique.  In  cases  where  they 
have  studied  with  good  teachers  and  have  natural  ability  the 
last  element  may  possibly  be  omitted.  Communities  should 
pay  enough  to  make  it  possible  to  demand  these  requirements." 

"A  fundamental  and  uniform  system  of  training  will  not 
make  a  good  teacher  out  of  material  which  has  no  aptitude 
for  it.  Such  training  can  only  make  a  fairly-efficient  grinding 
machine  which  in  proportion  to  its  success  is  the  more  fatal  to 
the  richer  and  subtler  elements  of  character  and  individuality. 
A  thorough,  yet  free  and  practical,  study  of  mental  and  moral 
growth  of  personality  in  those  to  be  taught  is  desirable." 

"  The  present  system,  like  almost  all  other  things  past  and 
present,  seems  to  be  a  mixture  fairly  satisfactory  in  some 
respects  and  more  or  less  unsatisfactory  in  others." 

"  Professional  training  is  very  desirable,  but  it  should  be 
based  upon,  and  not  substituted  for,  an  adequate  general 
education." 

"  The  danger  here  seems  to  lie  in  the  petty  little  rattletrap 
idea  that  someone  may  please  to  call  'scientific  basis.'     Life 


Appendix.  123 

and  nature,  especially  human  nature,  are  too  large  and 
complex  to  be  put  into  the  'basis'  and  when  you  think  you 
have  it,  off  it  goes  to  higher  and  better  things  than  the 
scientific  basis  ever  figured  on." 

"  Such  training  can  be  made  scientific  only  in  so  far  as 
psychology  and  ethics  can  be  made  scientific." 

"  Teaching  is  an  art,  as  much  so  as  the  management  of  a 
military  campaign,  and  the  faculty  for  doing  it — grading  down 
from  genius  to  ordinary  knack  of  managing  or  getting  on 
with  young  people — is  of  too  fundamental  a  nature  to  be 
communicated  to  anyone.  What  he  has  can  be  improved  and 
cultivated  by  proper  training,  especially  by  actual  practice." 

"  The  only  science,  in  a  reasonably  strict  sense  of  the  word, 
should  be  the  sciences  which  bear  on  pedagogy,  physiology, 
psychology,  hygiene,  etc.  These  in  most  cases  ought  to  be 
taught  for  the  good  of  the  teacher  who  is  in  the  making 
rather  than  for  the  theory  of  the  science  in  question.  No 
knowledge  of  sciences  alone  can  make  a  teacher,  nor,  on  the 
other  hand,  any  genius  so  gi*eat  that  training  of  the  right  sort 
would  not  be  helpful." 

"  Teaching  is  an  art,  but  every  art  has  a  scientific  basis  and 
it  can  be  in  a  measure  well  taught." 

"  If  '  scientific '  means  sound,  methodical  training  which 
shall  exalt  personality  in  teacher  and  student  I  believe  it 
will  become  increasingly  possible,  and  it  is  an  end  worthy 
of  great  and   persistent  effort." 

"  No  art  that  is  so  wealthy  in  its  demands  and  in  its 
relations  to  human  needs  as  the  art  of  teaching  is  will  ever 
be  put  upon  a  purely  scientific  basis.  We  do  not  live  by 
science  alone,  but  by  love,  instinct,  tact,  and  personal 
experience.  These  always  transcend  our  science  however  the 
latter  may  grow.  A  wholesome,  progressive  training  for 
teachers,  with  a  due  use  of  science,  but  without  crystalli- 
zation into  a  '  system,'  will  always  be  in  order.     The  normal 


124  Appendix. 

schools  and  universities  may  both  take  part  in  this  progress. 
They  will  be  useful  only  in  so  far  as  they  try  not  to  '  devise ' 
systems  but  to  learn  from  year  to  year  something  new,  and  to 
apply  what  they  learn  to  solid  work." 

"  Some  in  trying  to  be  scientific  bring  human  beings  (the 
pupils)  down  several  stages  and  assume  that  their  best  develop- 
ment can  be  reached  by  treating  them  as  if  they  were  simply 
bundles  of  instincts." 

"There  are  two  factors  required  in  a  successful  teacher,  (1) 
knowledge  of  his  subject,  (2)  capacity  to  deal  with  pupils. 
The  teacher  to  be  gets  the  first  in  schools  and  colleges,  and 
the  second  he  can  acquire  only  by  practice.  Any  arrangement 
by  which  would-be  teachers  can  really  find  out  if  they  have  a 
capacity  to  teach  is  of  service." 

"  Of  the  three  elements  necessary  for  a  true  teacher,  viz., 
personality,  material  or  attainments,  and  method,  the  first, 
though  of  supreme  importance  in  all  grades,  is  increasingly  so 
as  we  go  down  the  grades,  and  the  second,  as  we  go  up  the 
grades.  As  to  the  third — a  formal,  communicable,  scientific 
method — I  believe  its  importance  has  been  greatly  exaggerated 
in  modern  times.  A  truly  scientific  method  would  be  a 
rational  application  of  the  science  of  psychology.  But  this 
science  is  as  yet  so  imperfect  that  an  attempt  to  make  a 
method  formulated  wholly  on  it  would  do  harm  rather  than 
good.  As  yet  the  informal,  intuitive  methods  of  mother  and 
born  teacher,  corrected  here  and  there  by  a  knowledge  of 
psychology,  is  all  that  is  left  us." 

"  The  history  of  education  can  be  taught  in  as  scientific  a 
manner  as  the  history  of  any  other  function  of  man's  social 
life.  Instruction  in  methods  of  teaching  is  to  be  made 
scientific  by  being  accurate  and  comprehensive." 

"  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  some  sort  of  professional 
training  is  very  desirable  for  all  sorts  of  teachers  of  all 
grades  of  schools." 


Appendix.  125 

"  I  do  not  remember  ever  to  have  heard  that  a  university 
teacher  was  benefited  by  strictly  pedagogical  training.  Some 
of  them  are  pretty  bad  and  certainly  could  be  improved,  but 
I  hardly  think  a  course  in  pedagogy  would  do  much  for  them. 
I  do  not  think  it  possible  to  place  the  training  of  teachers 
upon  a  scientific  basis  at  present.  The  personal  element  is 
such  an  important  factor  that  no  amount  of  training  can 
overcome  certain  defects  or  destroy  certain  powers." 

"  On  a  basis  of  assumed  and  trustworthy  knowledge  of 
principles,  not  simply  on  a  scientific  basis,  it  might  be 
perfectly  possible  to  work  out  a  system  of  training  for 
teachers  in  elementary  and  secondary  schools  that  would 
be  really  valuable  and  effective,  provided  one  always  insisted, 
first,  on  having  its  subjects  (the  proposed  teachers)  persons  of 
decided  natural  gifts,  and,  secondly,  persons  of  native  power 
to  judge  of  the  great  instrumentalities  suitable  for  carrying 
theoretic  methods  into  practice.  The  teacher,  like  the  poet, 
must  be  born  before  he  is  'made.'" 

"  The  training  of  teachers  can  be  placed  on  a  scientific 
basis  in  a  manner  somewhat  similar  to  that  of  other  pro- 
fessions— the  practice  of  medicine,  e.g.  The  difficulties  may 
be  somewhat  greater  on  account  of  the  somewhat  intangible 
nature  of  the  subject,  but  the  difficulties  can  be  measurably 
overcome  by  the  vigorous  and  persistent  application  of  the 
scientific  method." 

"  Only  those  teachers  who  have  acquired  the  power  of 
thinking  and  working  independently  can  be  regarded  as 
scientifically  trained." 

"  The  elements  of  discretion,  judgment  and  adaptation  of 
principles  to  particular  cases,  seem  on  the  whole  to  be  rela- 
tively larger  in  teaching  than  in  military  science,  engineering 
or  even  medicine.  Still  the  scientific  element  remains  and 
is  of  vital  importance." 

"  An  adequate  system  of  professional  training  upon  a 
scientific  basis  will  eventually  be  evolved." 


126  Appendix. 

"  No  person  should  be  admitted  as  a  public-school  teacher 
without  having  studied  pedagogy,  theoretically  and  practically, 
for  at  least  two  or  three  years  in  a  normal  school,  and  nobody 
should  be  admitted  as  teacher  under  twenty  j^ears  of  age. 
The  German  normal-school  system  is  good.  There  pupils 
enter  the  normal  school  after  leaving  the  highest  grades  of 
the  public  school  and  receive,  in  their  five  or  six  years'  course 
in  the  normal  school,  education,  and,  at  the  same  time,  a  sound 
theoretical  and  practical  training.  A  course  in  the  normal 
school  should  always  include  at  least  one  foreign  language, 
for  no  one  knows  his  own  language  unless  he  has  had  an 
opportunity  of  comparing  it  with  another." 

"  Education  is  the  development  of  life.  The  fault  of  pro- 
fessional training  lies  in  a  narrow  conception  of  scientific  law. 
Until  we  know  more  we  must  leave  room  for  the  play  of 
forces  which  do  not  enter  into  our  science." 

"All  who  look  forwai'd  to  teaching  as  a  life  work  should 
receive  a  proper  training  in  the  science  and  art  of  education." 

"  If  a  teacher  loves  his  subject  he  will  soon  learn  what  not 
to  do.  If  he  does  not  love  his  subject  no  amount  of  training 
will  make  him  a  good  teacher.  The  best  training  is  to  set 
a  man  in  a  classroom  of  boys  to  teach  them  and  learn  by 
doing  it." 

"  No  one  should  be  permitted  to  deal  with  the  minds  and 
bodies  of  children — especially  young  children — without  as 
thorough  an  understanding  of  their  structure  and  action  as  is 
required  for  an  engineer  in  regard  to  his  machine.  The 
present  neglect  of  thorough  instruction  in  psychology,  physi- 
ology and  hygiene  is  a  criminal  absurdity." 


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